ISLAMABAD: A Senate panel approved the controversial Prevention of Electronics Crimes Bill 2015 on Tuesday. The bill, which had already been approved by the National Assembly, would now be put up for discussion in the Senate, which must approve it before it can be signed into law by the president. The Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunications met under the chair of Senator Shahi Syed at the Parliament House and discussed the features of the bill. Implementation of the bill would see punishment of up to 14 years imprisonment and Rs 50 million fines on electronic crimes. A special court would be established for hearing the cases falling under the act. With this bill, a person can be trailed under the law even if the crime is committed from outside Pakistan. But investigation of electronics crimes cannot be carried out without court’s permission. With the permission of the court, the government would be able to seek help of other countries for investigation into cyber-crimes. The IT companies registered with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) would be dealt with under PTA act as well. Under this act, imprisonment of up to seven years can be awarded for funding terrorism or terrorist organisations through internet. The bill was passed by the NA standing committee on IT in 2015, while it was approved by the lower house of the parliament on April 13 this year. It had been widely criticised by the IT industry as well as members of civil society for curbing human rights and giving extraordinary powers to the law enforcement agencies. After its introduction in the NA, the bill was referred to the NA Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication to address concerns raised by the opposition members and stakeholders from the industry. Salient features of bill under discussion are as follows: Up to seven years imprisonment, Rs 10 million fine or both for hate speech, or trying to create disputes and spread hatred on the basis of religion or sectarianism Up to three years imprisonment and Rs 0.5 million fine or both for cheating others through internet Up to five year imprisonment, Rs 5 million fine or both for transferring or copying of sensitive basic information Up to seven years imprisonment and Rs 0.5 million fine or both for uploading obscene photos of children Up to Rs 50,000 fine for sending messages irritating to others or for marketing purposes. If the crime is repeated, the punishment would be three months imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 1 million Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 0.5 million for creating a website for negative purposes Up to one year imprisonment or a fine of up to Rs 1 million for forcing an individual for immoral activity, or publishing an individual’s picture without consent, sending obscene messages or unnecessary cyber interference Up to seven year imprisonment, a fine of Rs 10 million or both for interfering in sensitive data information systems Three month imprisonment or a Rs 50,000 fine or both for accessing unauthorised data Three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 5 million for obtaining information about an individual’s identification, selling the information or retaining it with self Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 0.5 million for issuing a SIM card in an unauthorised manner Up to three year imprisonment and fine of up to Rs 1 million rupees for making changes in a wireless set or a cell phone Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 1 million for spreading misinformation about an individual Up to three years imprisonment and fine of up to Rs 1 million for misusing internet.