How do White Collar crimes affect the economy?

What is in this Blog;

• Introduction

• White Collar Crime

• Classification of White Collar Crime;

• Bank Fraud

• Blackmail

• Bribery

• Computer Fraud

• Tax Fraud

• Nature of White Collar Crime

• Effect of White-Collar Crime on Indian Economy

• Laws Related to White-Collar Crime

• Conclusion

Introduction:

In order to understand how White Collar crime affects the economy of India, one must be aware of what is White Collar crime. The main objective of this blog is to provide all information regarding White Collar crime to all readers and law aspirants and help them to understand career requirements and choices in this particular field. They must know that the career aspect and opportunities in this sector are increasing drastically, and legal learning institutions are also offering online legal certification courses on White Collar crime.

White Collar Crime:

The word White Collar crime was defined by the famous sociologist Edwin Sutherland in 1939, he said White-Collar crime is, “a crime committed by a person of responsibility and high social status in the course of his occupation”. This definition has 5 attributes i.e, “It is a crime;”, “ Committed by a person of respectability;”, “Of High social status;”, “In the course of his profession or occupation;”, and ”It is usually a violation of trust”.

Recently, white-collar crime has been defined as the “use of the significant position of power for illegal gain that results in damage or harm to victims as measured by financial loss, physical harm, and damage to the community morals”. In simple words, White Collar crimes, are the ones which are related to the corporate sectors of a country and are generally committed by the rich or business class of society. White-collar crime is an illegal act done to achieve an illegal motive by doing wrongdoing. This is one of the most dangerous kinds of crimes as it involves a huge amount of financial loss to the victims.

Classification of White Collar Crime:

There are different types of crimes that come under White Collar crime, some of them are mentioned below;

Bank Fraud:

This means engaging in such activities in order to defraud a bank or using illegal means to obtain assets held by financial institutions. There are also various types of bank fraud such as; Check frauds, deposit account frauds, purchase bill frauds, loans frauds, frauds in foreign currency transactions, and inter-branch frauds.

Blackmail:

As defined by the Indian Penal Code’s Section 503, “Blackmailing or criminal intimidation as, making a demand for money or any consideration by the imposition of threat to cause physical injury or to cause damage to one’s property, or to accuse one of a crime, or to expose one’s secret”. So when a person of high society or influential position resorts to blackmailing for the purpose of financial gain, then this type of blackmailing falls under white-collar crime.

Bribery:

One of the most harmful and popular forms of white-collar crime, which is almost happening in all sectors nowadays is Bribery. Bribery is the practice of offering money, goods or services or any gifts to someone in order to have control over their actions. Whether someone offers or accepts the bribe, both things fall under crime. In India, a wide number of public officials commit this crime on daily basis, and it is their primary source of income.

Computer Fraud:

Any type of crime which is taken place on the internet, by the internet or in cyberspace, is known as cybercrime, but when this crime is non-violent and is majorly focused on Financial gain then this is known as White-collar cybercrime. There are several incidences in India which are included in this category, and IPC as well as several other acts and regulations have been strictly actions related to this type of white-collar crime.

Tax Frauds:

Tax Fraud is also known as Tax evasion means evading tax by providing wrong information in tax forms or illegally transferring property in order to avoid tax. In other words, one purposely conceals their true earnings and financial status from the government in order to avoid heavy tax. This can be done by an individual, company, or organisation of high authority.

Nature of White Collar Crime:

It is necessary for every law aspirant to know about the nature of the white-collar crime as it is an important as well as complicated subject, numerous online law certification courses based on White-Collar crime include this topic. As white-collar crime falls in the category of crime, then it is dealt with as a criminal case. But many believe that it should be counted as a civil case, due to which there is a lot of confusion. That’s why there are both criminal as well as civil liabilities for the same offence, and there are provisions in both Civil Procedure Code and Criminal Procedure Code.

Effect of White Collar Crime on Indian Economy:

With the advancement of technology and commerce, the rate of white-collar crime is also increasing in our country. According to experts, the economic impact of white-collar crime is far more costly than ordinary crime. Bank frauds, Tax evasions, and other types of white-collar crime especially bribery have been considered a hindrance to the economic growth of the nation. It not only affects the financial status of the country but also has a very negative impact on society. The impact of white-collar crime alters the stimulating factors of the Indian economy, such as; Impact on the Company, Impact on Employees, Impact on offenders, Impact on victims, and Impact on society. Also, the corruption in government offices and political parties is causing many threats to the Indian Economy and developments.

Laws related to White Collar Crime:

Here are some of the legislations that are being implemented by the government of India too in order to stop the increasing rate of White Collar crime;

• Indian Penal Code

• Income Tax Act, 1961

• Negotiable instruments act

• Money laundering Prevention Act

• 1988, Prevention of corruption act

• Information technology Act, 2005

• The Companies Act

• The Commodities Act

Conclusion:

India is a growing and developing country, and with increasing time Indian legal system is also enacting strict and effective measures to put an end to things which are threatening India’s development and democracy. That’s why it is the responsibility of Law aspirants to understand their role and make sure to understand the concepts such as white-collar crime and the laws and consequences of such crimes beforehand. Many legal learning platforms which offer the best online law certification courses, include courses such as White-Collar crime, to help learners. Understanding the impact of White-Collar crime on different sectors of India and helping the legislation and government to put an end to this should be their primary objectives.