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Section 14: Secure electronic record

Information Technology Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 2000
Section 13 All 90 Sections of Information Technology Act Section 15

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 14

Section 14 defines secure electronic records, providing that where an electronic record has been subjected to an approved security procedure at a specific point in time, such record shall be deemed to be a secure electronic record from that point until the time of verification.

  • Application of Notified Security Procedures: Requires that the record be processed using security procedures and standards prescribed by the Central Government under Section 16.
  • Verification of Tamper-Free Integrity: Mandates that cryptographic hashes or audit mechanisms establish that the record remained uncorrupted and unaltered across the entire intermediate timeframe.
  • Statutory Evidentiary Presumption: Triggers statutory presumptions under Section 85B of the Indian Evidence Act that the secure record has not been altered since the security procedure was affixed.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Arjun Panditrao Khotkar v. Kailash Kushanrao Gorantyal (2020) 7 SCC 1: Supreme Court held that secure electronic records complying with statutory security certifications carry strong presumptions of integrity in judicial trials.
  • Anvar P.V. v. P.K. Basheer (2014) 10 SCC 473: Supreme Court underscored that records meeting secure electronic standards reduce evidentiary vulnerability to claims of metadata tampering.
  • Tukaram S. Dighole v. Manikrao Shivaji Kokate (2010) 4 SCC 329: Supreme Court emphasized the necessity of demonstrating unbroken digital custody and secure electronic record procedures to establish trial reliability.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

In banking and commercial litigation, tender system security logs and ISO/IEC 27001 audit certificates to prove that the database satisfies Section 14 secure electronic record criteria, enabling the court to draw the mandatory presumption of non-alteration under Section 85B.

Section 13 All 90 Sections of Information Technology Act Section 15