43,834 complaints filed since 2020
While digital space acts as a cornerstone for achieving economic growth, social engagement and personal expression in the twenty-first century, the unchecked presence of sex predators, sexual bullies and harassers, blackmailers and frauds is increasingly making cyberspace a perilous territory for women to tread on.
The police data offers a useful picture of the situation—from January to February this year, victims filed 1,192 complaints with the Police Cyber Support for Women, and from August to December last year, they filed 3,971 complaints.
Experts say that this data presents only a partial picture of a highly alarming scenario as many women still do not have the resources or reality to resort to the law enforcers.
In a recent incident in February, a woman in Magura found her personal pictures were doctored to produce obscene pictures using editing tools and were published on a Facebook page along with her mobile number and address.
The victim filed a case with the nearest police station and also recorded a complaint with the Police Cyber Support for Women at the police headquarters.
Upon prompt investigation, the PCSW in coordination with the case investigating team nabbed the accused, the victim’s former husband.
They found that the man embarked on a revenge porn campaign against her after she had sent him a divorce notice two months ago.
PSCW monthly data shows that this year 583 complaints were filed in January and 609 in February.
A monthly breakdown of the PSCW data starting from August last year shows—630 complaints filed in August, 979 in September, 881 in October, 714 in November, and 767 complaints in December.
Since the PCSW was established on November 16, 2020, total 43,834 complaints were registered till February 28 this year.
Between November 16, 2020 and November 15, 2022 the PCSW received 22,304 complaints, while another staggering 21,530 complaints were filed between November 16, 2022 and February 28 this year.
Of the complainants, 17,883 chose not to go for legal proceedings after the PCSW’s initial intervention and arrest of suspects.
For 25,518 complaints, necessary action, including taking down objectionable contents from online and providing legal assistance, was taken for 25,518 complaints while 433 complaints were under process at present.
PCSW officials, however, could not provide information on how many cybercrimes complaints had ended up in filing of cases.
Enamul Haque Sagar, assistant inspector general of police for media and public relations at the force headquarters told New Age on March 25 that many victims tend to avoid filing complaints due to societal pressure and fear of public exposure.
The police were fully committed to supporting the victims and resolving these cases within legal bounds, he said, adding that for the police to be effectively able to stand by the victims, lodging complaints was necessary.
‘Besides the PCSW, we have already launched a hotline at the headquarters to promptly address incidents of violence against women, including cybercrimes,’ said the police official.
The PCSW analysis of the data of the complaints filed so far shows that most of the complaints (41 per cent) were filed over harassment through crimes of doxing which is making publicly available on the internet someone’s doctored photos, names, contacts and other information. The second highest complaints (18 per cent) are related to hacking of social media accounts; another 18 per cent complaints relate to blackmailing with doctored images and videos, and 9 per cent complaints were made over cyber bullying.
In yet another incident in Chattogram, a homemaker recently discovered a Facebook profile using her photos and details.
The profile posted some privately photographed images of her with her husband. When they contacted the person behind the profile, it identified itself as a hacker and demanded Tk 1 lakh within seven days.
The victim soon filed a case with the nearest police station and a complaint with the PCSW.
The police probe revealed that the perpetrator was a mobile phone repairer to whom the victim’s husband went to have the problem in his mobile phone fixed. He stole the photos stored in the husband’s mobile phone.
Human rights activists and legal experts, meanwhile, observe that the country’s support system in cybercrimes lacks victim-centric support and lawyers specialised in handling such cases, further discouraging women from seeking justice.
Supreme Court lawyer and rights activist Jyotirmoy Barua said that very few lawyers in the country had the expertise and interest in these cases.
‘There is also a lack of expert manpower in the police or in legal systems to handle such cases as the issues of protection and safeguarding in these crimes are not included in laws,’ he said.
Different types of crimes against women occurring in cyberspaces should be included in the existing laws, he said.
Jyotirmoy further said that women’s safety on cyberspaces must be ensured, enabling them to access and use the internet resources to facilitate their growth.
Experts also emphasised the urgent need to address gaps in policies, fact-checking infrastructure, and digital literacy to eliminate crimes, including harassment and bullying against women on cyberspaces.
Dhaka university professor of women and gender studies Sanzida Akhter observes that ‘cultural lag’ is one of the main causes for cybercrimes to continue in such a relentless manner.
In the recent times, the material culture featuring tools and technology is changing in a breakneck speed with which the non-material culture of values, beliefs and norms is struggling to keep pace, leading to a situation in which society is striving hard to adapt, Professor Sanzida explains.
Saying that an absence of a victim-centric support system discouraged many women to seek help, she also stressed that the state and other stakeholders should come forward in creating a safe cyberspace for women.
‘Victims aren’t filing cases as there is no victim-centric support. Women are being stigmatised even when they file complaints due to the widespread culture of victim blaming,’ she said.
Awareness about how to use cyberspaces safely and exemplary punishment for the perpetrators are also prerequisites in this regard, the professor further said.
Supreme Court lawyer Miti Sanjana also said that most of the victims of cybercrimes are women and underage girls who do not come forward fearing social stigma and victim blaming.
‘Most of the victims keep it all to themselves. These crimes have a life-long impact on the victims. Fear and hesitation are inflicted on them as they go through these experiences and they descend into psychological trauma,’ she said.
The existing cyber security laws do not adequately address these crimes to provide remedies for the victims Miti said, adding that the general laws regarding these crimes are not properly implemented either.
