Cybercrimes continue to scourge women

Neela Akter (not her real name), a homemaker, received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number last week.
The sender demanded money after sending her her personal photos, saying he would share those with her relatives and on social media if she refused to pay the amount.
Shocked and confused, Neela insisted she did not share those photos with anyone and they were only stored in her mobile phone. She immediately filed a general diary and a complaint with the “Police Cyber Support for Women [PCSW]” of the Police Headquarters.
Upon prompt investigation, the PCSW was able to apprehend a suspect. Investigators said the suspect — a deliveryman — managed to gain access to Neela’s phone while delivering a product.
He claimed he needed to check a One-Time Password (OTP). When he got hold of her phone, he managed to get information of Neela’s email account and consequently, was able to access her cloud storage. 
Neela’s case is just one of thousands, as women are increasingly targeted as victims of cybercrimes. Despite many women coming forward to report or file complaints, the frequency of such incidents still seems to be on the rise.
Many, however, are reluctant to file complaints due to pressure from family or the society. Some even withdraw the cases out of fear and shame.
Law enforcers have claimed the lack of follow-through on these cases give the perpetrators the scope to evade legal consequences.
Legal experts, however, said the system lacks victim-centric support and specialised lawyers to handle such cases, further discouraging women from seeking justice.
Data from PCSW shows a marked increase in complaints.
At least 630 complaints were filed in August alone and the number rose to 979 in the following month.
Since PCSW was established on November 16, 2020, a total of 40,280 complaints have been registered till September 30 this year.
Between November 16, 2020, and November 15, 2022, PCSW received 22,304 complaints. Between November 16, 2022, and September 30 this year, another staggering 17,976 complaints were filed.
Out of the total complainants, 15,895 chose not to proceed with the legal battles after PCSW’s initial intervention and arrests of suspects.
Enamul Haque Sagor, assistant inspector general at PHQ, told The Daily Star, “Many victims refrain from pursuing complaints or going through legal proceedings due to societal pressures and fear of public exposure. Perpetrators exploit this fear, which is why these crimes continue.
“We’re fully committed to supporting the victims and resolving these cases within legal bounds … But the victims need to come forward.”
The PCSW database highlights that 41 percent of the complaints pertain to harassment through doctored images and personal details posted on social media; 18 percent involve hacking social media accounts; another 18 percent relate to blackmail with objectionable photos; and nine percent involve the creation of fake social media profiles with victims’ photos and personal information.
Lata Begum (not her real name) recently came across a Facebook profile using her photos and details. The profile posted various pornographic photographs with the image of her face superimposed on them. She too filed a complaint with the PCSW. 
It then arrested Khairuzzaman Dalim and Rasel Molla and the investigators said the arrestees were her neighbours who did it following a land dispute with the victim’s family.
Rights activist Advocate Salma Ali told The Daily Star that there is no accountability and proper monitoring for the crimes against women taking place in cyberspaces.
“Victims aren’t filing cases as there is no victim-centric support. They are being victimised even while filing complaints,” she said, adding there is also a lack of expert manpower in police or in legal systems to handle such cases.
“Lawyers [here] don’t have such expertise, as such cases need different kinds of evidence for conviction during the trial,” said Salma, also the executive director of the Bangladesh National Women Lawyers’ Association.
She further said the trial process is time-consuming, and “as the saying goes, ‘justice delay is justice denied'”.
According to court sources, the cyber tribunal of Dhaka was only able to deliver verdicts in 213 cases out of 2,141 filed between 2014 and 2022.
Of those, the accused in 162 cases were acquitted till December 2022. At least 1,600 cases were pending trial with the Dhaka Cyber Tribunal till September this year, the sources added.
About trial delays and low conviction, Rafiqul Islam, the public prosecutor of the Cyber Tribunal of Dhaka, told this correspondent, “One of the major reasons for the delay in trial and poor conviction is that witnesses did not appear in the court. And in many cases, the victims reach out-of-court settlements.”
However, he said he did not think there was a lack of expert lawyers to deal with cybercrime cases. “We’ve expert lawyers in court now,” adding that steps are being taken to resolve all the cases soon.