According to the reports from India Today, visiting torrent sites and another website that is blocked by the government could land you in prison for 3 years along with Rs three lakhs ($4468) as fine. In simple words, Indian Government doesn’t want you to watch or download files that are copyrighted.
Government of India had earlier blocked more than 131 websites which offered torrent services to it’s users. The banning of these torrent sites were initially done by blacklisting them out using DNS Filtering. This means that the DNS of those blocked websites were added to a list maintained by the ISP (Internet Service Provider) and whenever a user tried connect to such sites, the DNS servers of ISPs would block those requests. But such bans were of no use as many internet users used many VPN and proxy sites to visit these torrent sites and hence it became easy to bypass such defence mechanism.
This rule applies if you simply try to view a torrent file or download it from a host which is banned in the country. The report points out that you don't have to download a torrent file, or the actual video or other files, which might have copyright. Just accessing information under a blocked URL will land you in jail along with a heavy fine of Rs 3 lakh.
But now, after intense brainstorming or by just simple intelligent common sense, the Indian Government came up with another method of blocking these sites by bringing up the big sharks of the oceans like Airtel And TATA Communications who apparently manage a number of internet gateways in India. Things will be getting really COLD from now on!
The message displayed on the screenshot above clearly explains that the blocking has been done at Internet Gateways which is maintained by TATA COMMUNICATIONS.
“This URL has been blocked under the instructions of the Competent Government Authority or in compliance with the orders of a Court of competent jurisdiction. Viewing, downloading, exhibiting or duplicating an illicit copy of the contents under this URL is punishable as an offence under the laws of India, including but not limited to under Sections 63, 63-A, 65 and 65-A of the Copyright Act, 1957 which prescribe imprisonment for 3 years and also fine of upto Rs. 3,00,000/-. Any person aggrieved by any such blocking of this URL may contact at urlblock@tatacommunications.com who will, within 48 hours, provide you the details of relevant proceedings under which you can approach the relevant High Court or Authority for redressal of your grievance”
However, blocking illegal websites is a good step and the message seems threatening too. But it fails to provide any clarity on how it would be enforced. Internet users in India need to be careful while browsing the web and it’ll be better to stay away from blocked websites.
Government of India had earlier blocked more than 131 websites which offered torrent services to it’s users. The banning of these torrent sites were initially done by blacklisting them out using DNS Filtering. This means that the DNS of those blocked websites were added to a list maintained by the ISP (Internet Service Provider) and whenever a user tried connect to such sites, the DNS servers of ISPs would block those requests. But such bans were of no use as many internet users used many VPN and proxy sites to visit these torrent sites and hence it became easy to bypass such defence mechanism.
This rule applies if you simply try to view a torrent file or download it from a host which is banned in the country. The report points out that you don't have to download a torrent file, or the actual video or other files, which might have copyright. Just accessing information under a blocked URL will land you in jail along with a heavy fine of Rs 3 lakh.
But now, after intense brainstorming or by just simple intelligent common sense, the Indian Government came up with another method of blocking these sites by bringing up the big sharks of the oceans like Airtel And TATA Communications who apparently manage a number of internet gateways in India. Things will be getting really COLD from now on!
The message displayed on the screenshot above clearly explains that the blocking has been done at Internet Gateways which is maintained by TATA COMMUNICATIONS.
“This URL has been blocked under the instructions of the Competent Government Authority or in compliance with the orders of a Court of competent jurisdiction. Viewing, downloading, exhibiting or duplicating an illicit copy of the contents under this URL is punishable as an offence under the laws of India, including but not limited to under Sections 63, 63-A, 65 and 65-A of the Copyright Act, 1957 which prescribe imprisonment for 3 years and also fine of upto Rs. 3,00,000/-. Any person aggrieved by any such blocking of this URL may contact at urlblock@tatacommunications.com who will, within 48 hours, provide you the details of relevant proceedings under which you can approach the relevant High Court or Authority for redressal of your grievance”
However, blocking illegal websites is a good step and the message seems threatening too. But it fails to provide any clarity on how it would be enforced. Internet users in India need to be careful while browsing the web and it’ll be better to stay away from blocked websites.
Visiting Torrents Sites in India can land you in jail for 3 years and Rs 3 Lakh Fine
Reviewed by Tech Ugly
on
Monday, August 22, 2016
Rating:
Reviewed by Tech Ugly
on
Monday, August 22, 2016
Rating:
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