Electronic transaction bill 'lacks substance'

Electronic transaction bill 'lacks substance'

Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Years of intense public pressure on the government to draft a
bill on electronic information and transactions have been a bit
of a disappointment as the completed draft lacks concrete
substance to regulate the crucial issue of cyber crime, according
to experts on the subject.

The government recently submitted the draft to the House of
Representatives, but it was still unclear when it would be
deliberated upon. If approved, the bill will be the first cyber
law in the country.

The draft, a copy of which was obtained by The Jakarta Post,
consists of 48 sections that provide common rules on three
issues: electronic information and its supporting system,
electronic transactions and legal sanctions.

An electronic transaction is defined as a legal action that is
done via computers, a computer network or any electronic medium.

Such a transaction is considered to have occurred when an
agreement has been reached between the concerned parties,
including the checking and verification of data, identity,
personal identification number or password.

According to the bill, an agency can be set up with the task
of issuing a certificate for enterprises selling products or
services over electronic media.

Nevertheless, there are no articles that specifically regulate
clear measures to prevent cyber fraud or at least a set of
security requirements that one must fulfill when making
electronic transactions to minimize possible abuse.

The absence of such a regulation is indeed what many experts
say is lacking, if the government is serious about curbing
unrestrained cyber crimes in the country.

On a positive note, the draft allows electronic information
and/or printed results of electronic information to be used as
evidence in a court of law.

Data compiled by the Indonesian Internet Service Providers
Association shows that there were at least 210 Internet credit
card fraud cases in 2003.

A report from the Indonesian Credit Card Association shows
that credit card fraud caused a total loss of about Rp 60 billion
(US$6.55 million) last year, which was about 50 percent higher
than in 2002.

Other types of fraud through the Internet include gaming
fraud, tax fraud and "e-procurement" fraud.

In terms of legal sanctions, the most severe violation is
illegally using and/or accessing computers and/or electronic
systems in order to obtain, alter, damage or delete information
that belongs to the government.

Such a violation carries a maximum of 20 years imprisonment
and/or a Rp 10 billion fine, according to the proposed draft.

Similar actions done in order to enrich oneself or obtain
financial information from the central bank, private banks, other
financial institutions and credit card issuing companies carry a
maximum of 10 years in prison and/or a Rp 2 billion fine.

Experts have said that a cyber law is essential in the current
economic era. It could also encourage more businesspeople to
start doing business over the Internet with the implementation of
e-commerce since legal certainty would be guaranteed.

At present, there is only one cyber crime division, set up in
May last year, at the Jakarta Police.

Electronic information is a collection of electronic data that
includes texts, symbols, pictures, signs, writing, sounds, and
other forms that have been processed so that they have meanings.

The definition excludes letters of will, marriages, ownership
documents or any other document that requires notarial
legalization.

The draft bill also states that electronic information can be
considered valid as long as it can be held accountable, accessed,
retrieved and displayed, and its completeness is guaranteed so
that it explains an action.