Cyber volunteers to only report unlawful content; state/UT police to verify and act as per law | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: The home ministry on Wednesday clarified that the cyber volunteers, as technical experts, will only assist the state/UT law enforcement agencies (LEAs) in cyber hygiene promotion and reporting of unlawful content. It will be up to the LEAs to verify the content and take necessary action as per the extant laws.
“The content reported (by cyber volunteers registered under the programme) shall be verified and validated by the State/UT LEAs for taking appropriate action as per the existing provisions of law. There is no discretion in the hands of a cyber volunteer,” MoS (Home) G Kishan Reddy assured the Rajya Sabha in reply to a question.
The home ministry said its I4C wing had rolled out the cyber crime volunteer framework as a part of cyber hygiene promotion and to bring together citizens to contribute in the fight against cybercrime in the country and assist State/UT LEAs in their endeavour to curb cyber crimes.
The challenges of cyber space are many which flow from its vastness and borderless character, the home ministry said.
The volunteers, said Reddy, shall be registered and their services utilised by the respective State/UT police agencies, as per their requirement. Cyber volunteers will be registered by following the due process and they will be required to furnish ID proof, address proof, photograph etc.