In last few years India has seen a big growth in the adoption of VPNs. People commonly use VPNs to protect their privacy, keep their data secure, work from home as well as get material from around the world. But many people are confused if it’s legal to use a VPN in India. There is no easy yes or no answer. Using VPNs are always legal but how you use them is the important thing.
What is a VPN and why do people use it?
A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, makes a safe and encrypted link between your device and the internet. It masks your real IP address and keeps your data safe from hackers, trackers, and public Wi-Fi networks that aren’t secure. Businesses, people who work from home, and those who care about their internet privacy all use VPNs a lot in India.
Is it legal to use a VPN in India?
It is legal to use a VPN in India. There is no law which says you can’t use a VPN. Common people and businesses can use VPN services for some legal reasons, such as protecting data, securing their computers and connecting to office networks. A lot of Indian IT enterprises and multinational companies always depend on VPNs for their day-today work.
But using a VPN for any kind of illegal activities affects the law. Using a VPN to commit a cyber crime, access illegal content, hacking other’s computer or get around legal restrictions with bad intent is prohibited. This is not because of the VPN, but because of the act itself.
Indian Laws About Using a VPN:
Using of VPN in India is regulated by the general cyber and IT regulations, not a statute that only applies to VPNs. The Information Technology Act, 2000 made a rule for internet activities, protecting data and cyber crime. This law says that doing any types of illegal and criminal acts like fraud, identity theft, hacking or sharing illegal content on the internet (with or without a VPN) is against the law.
The Indian government implemented a new cybersecurity guidelines in 2022 that say VPN service providers have to keep some customer data, like IP addresses and use logs, for some amount of time. The main aim of these steps was to make the country’s cybersecurity and criminal investigation better, not to stop people from using VPNs.
Government Rules About VPN Data Logging:
The CERT Team (Computer Emergency Response) says that VPN service providers in India must keep an eye on user logs for at least five years. Some multinational VPN service providers decided to take their physical servers from India instead of following all these rules. This rule caused some confusion, but it didn’t make it illegal for Indians to use VPN.
As long as they are doing legal activities, people in India and around the world can continue using of VPN services.
Is It Legal to Access Blocked Websites Using a VPN?
Taking help of a VPN to gain access to any content that the Indian government has blocked may break local laws, depending on what the content is. Casual users are hardly get arrested for this but if they are caught accessing illegal or prohibited content then they could get in trouble with the law. The risk will be high if the content is about national security, piracy or other serious crimes.
Conclusion:
VPNs are legal in India and are frequently used for work, privacy and security purposes. There is no prohibition on VPN services. Using a VPN, on the other hand, does not protect you from Indian regulations. If you trying to do something illegal while using a VPN then you can still be punished under current cyber and criminal Act. People should only use VPNs for legal purposes and in a responsible way to stay safe.