INTRODUCTION
Imagine waking up to thousands of notifications after someone reveals your personal details in a post. Within hours, a stranger knows your address, phone number, and family members’ contact information; this act is known as ‘doxing.’ In the digital age, personal information has become a valuable asset; a single post exposing details such as a permanent address, phone number, workplace, or family information can be used for intimidation, manipulation, and harassment.[1] ‘Doxing’ is the intentional publication of another person’s personal information without consent, usually to harm, threaten, intimidate, or facilitate abuse. ‘Doxxer’ generally refers to a person who searches online databases and social media for personal data, then targets victims and their family members to pressure or extort them by threatening to reveal sensitive information.[2]
For women, the consequences are often severe. These attacks target students, activists, influencers, and other ordinary people. They are driven more by malicious intent to harm someone’s autonomy. There’s no dedicated law against ‘doxing.’ The growing number of cases poses a growing threat to privacy; this legal gap highlights the urgent need for a legal framework that specifically addresses the non-consensual sharing of personal information.
What does Doxing Look Like? Home address and phone number, workplace details, family members’ identities, and old photos, screenshots, or private messages. We generally acknowledge that women’s doxing is related to sexualizing and rape threats, used to dominate women and punish them for being too independent, speaking, or holding opinions publicly.
THE GENDERED IMPACT OF DOXING
Cybercrime increased rapidly from 2018 to 2022.[3] Online abuse includes non-consensual sharing of intimate images, digital manipulation of photos, stalking, doxing, and cyberbullying.
According to the 2024 report by the UN Secretary-General on violence against women and girls, three emerging challenges are identified.
- Hatred against Women
- Wider use of Artificial Intelligence
- Expansion of the Manosphere: Misogynistic content that is part of mainstream culture, shaping young minds full of hatred toward the opposite gender.[4]
Globally, millions of girls reported digital abuse every year, and statistics on the prevalence of digital abuse ranged from 16% to 58% across different regions of the world. Many women journalists frequently experience misogynistic, sexist, and sexualized hatred for speaking openly, and many victims often suffer from PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) due to unusual online attacks for being public.[5]
EXISTING LEGAL FRAMEWORK IN INDIA
Although India lacks a comprehensive legal framework for doxing, several other provisions under relevant laws protect against the crime of non-consensual disclosure of personal information; offenders may be prosecuted under the Information Technology Act, 2000[6] and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.[7]
Information Technology Act 2000 –
Section 66B: Punishment for dishonesty in receiving stolen resources or communication. This section covers fraudulently ordering or dishonestly acquiring any electronic device or computer resources, and such conduct is punishable by 3 years’ imprisonment and a fine exceeding 1 lakh rupees.[8]
Section 66D: Cheating by Personation Using Computer Resources. Under this provision, cheating or deceiving someone else by impersonating another person.[9]
Section 67A: The punishment for publishing or transmitting material containing sexually explicit content, etc., in electronic form. Various offences against women fall under Section 67, which addresses the publication of sexually explicit material without consent.[10]
Section 72: Penalty for breach of confidentiality and privacy. Under this provision, violating someone’s privacy by accessing any electronic record, books, registers, information, or other material.[11]
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 –
Section 351 (Criminal Intimidation): Under this section, there must be a threat to injure the person and damage the property or reputation of any family member.[12]
Section 78 (Stalking): Stalking is a criminal offence charged against a man who repeatedly follows or engages in personal interaction despite any interest, or that can be done through any other form of electronic media.[13]
Section 356 (Defamation): Defamation involves making or publishing a false statement with the intent to harm someone’s reputation.[14]
Section 79: It explicitly penalises any ‘word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman’.
Constitution of India 1950 –
Article 21: No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty. This fundamental right protects an individual’s right to privacy.[15]
Article 19(2): Under Article 19(2), to prevent violence against freedom of speech, weaponized for harassment or intimidation.[16]
Case Laws –
Shaviya Sharma v Squint Neon & Ors, on 22 February, 2024: In this case, the plaintiff faced offensive, defamatory, and derogatory comments on Twitter, as some X handles published private, sensitive personal information, which affected her professional life and reputation. The Delhi High Court acknowledged that doxing is not specifically defined or criminalised under Indian law, but this judgment exposes the legal gap in relying solely on constitutional remedies and the law of torts, rather than focusing on a specific legal framework that clearly defines doxing. [17]
Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v Union of India: In this landmark case, the right to privacy is linked to the right to life, including personal liberty. Article 21 of the Constitution defines this right, but although victims can argue for a constitutional remedy, this will create a legal gap between fragmented statutory provisions. [18]
LIMITATION OF EXISTING LEGAL FRAMEWORK
No Legal Framework: India lacks a separate law that criminalises doxing (the publication of unauthorised personal information) and that prescribes penalties.
Inadequate Protection for Women: Doxing targets women specifically to harm their reputations, even though insufficient laws against doxing give offenders more power to commit such a heinous act.
Fragmented Legal Remedies: Victims often need to pursue multiple lawsuits for constitutional remedies.
Enforcement Challenges: The increasing number of cybercrimes across different states and countries is making enforcement more complicated to handle.
Psychological and Reputational Harm: Doxing also causes mental distress and reputational harm that cannot be compensated.
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS
Australia: Due to the large-scale data breach, Australia criminalises doxing. This act introduces two new criminal offences to the Criminal Code 1995 regarding the release of personal information.
- Under Section 474.17C of the Criminal Code, using media to harm or harass is punishable by up to 6 years’ imprisonment.
- Under Section 474.17D of the Criminal Code, using media to aggressively harm one or more members of a group based on race, religion, or sexuality carries a penalty of up to 7 years’ imprisonment.[19]
South Korea: Under Article 49 of the Act on the Promotion of Information and Communication Network Utilisation and Information Protection for Original Owners, in response to the rise in celebrities’ suicides due to cyberbullying.[20]
Netherlands: Due to increasing doxing and individual targeting of politicians, activists, journalists, and others, the state has enacted a law for publishing personal data with the intent of harassment; there is a penalty of £25,750 and US$28,204.[21]
CONCLUSION
In India, a large number of people use media, which reflects the expansion of digital crime. It has also amplified the risk of doxing. Doxing is the non-consensual publication of an individual’s personal information with the intent to harm, intimidate, or cause reputational damage, and it plays a vital role in their mental health. With a limited legal framework, such as the Information Technology Act, 2000, constitutional protection, and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, doxing is not considered a distinct offence.
Digital India is the biggest campaign right now, becoming an integral part of everyday life; the law must evolve around digital forms of abuse. India should adopt a specific legal framework that criminalises doxing as the non-disclosure of personal information with harmful intent to ruin someone’s reputational image in society.
Ensure victims have appropriate legal remedies, striking a balance between the right to privacy and freedom of speech and expression. It is a constitutional imperative to safeguard individuals’ personal liberty in the digital age.
Author(s) Name: Diksha Ale (Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, Uttarakhand)
References:
[1] ENISA Threat Landscape 2023 (European Union Agency for Cybersecurity 2023)
[2] Combating Cyber Violence against Women and Girls (European Institute for Gender Equality 2022)
[3] National Crime Records Bureau, Crime in India 2022 (Ministry of Home Affairs 2023)
[4] United Nations General Assembly, ‘Accelerating Efforts to Eliminate All Forms of Violence against Women and Girls’ (23 August 2024) UN Doc A/79/325
[5] The Chilling: Global Trends in Online Violence Against Women Journalists (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 2021)
[6] Information Technology Act 2000
[7] Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023
[8] Information Technology Act 2000, s 66B
[9] Ibid s 66D
[10] Ibid s 67A
[11] Ibid s 72
[12] Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, s 351
[13] Ibid s 78
[14] Ibid s 356
[15] Constitution of India 1950, art 21
[16] Constitution of India 1950, art 19(2)
[17] Shaviya Sharma v Squint Neon & Ors (2024) CS(OS) 134/2024
[18] Justice K S Puttaswamy (Retd) and Anr v Union of India and Ors (2017) 10 SCC 1
[19] Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), ss 474.17C–474.17D
[20] Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection 2012 (South Korea), art 49
[21] ‘Use of personal data for the objective of harassment to become criminal offence’ (Government of Netherlands, 12 July 2023) <https://www.government.nl/latest/news/2023/07/12/use-of-personal-data-for-the-objective-of-harassment-to-become-criminal-offence> accessed 15 July 2026