ABSTRACT
This chapter examines rights in cyberspace. This is discussed under three headings: the rights of the users of cyberspace, the rights of the victims of cyber-crimes, and the right to be forgotten. The first category of rights is generally formulated on the basis of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the constitutional rights of citizens and the rights created by the policy guidelines of the intermediaries for their users/subscribers/customers. These rights may be static if seen from the perspectives of policy guidelines of different intermediaries and websites (most of which are hosted in the United States). But in certain respects, these rights may vary according to the regional laws of different countries when it comes to freedom of speech and expression and accessing certain specific content in cyberspace. Both these forms of rights may influence the second category of rights, i.e. the rights of the victims of cyber-crimes. This can be considered one of the core issues of cyber victimology. Victims' rights are multifaceted in this regard: they need removal of the content, confidentiality, restoration of lost reputations and monies and compensation from the wrongdoers. Their rights also include the right to be protected from further harm. But how far is the same achievable when the victims may themselves have shared their own data? This chapter discusses these issues. Rights in cyberspace must necessarily include discussions on the right to be forgotten. This is a right both for the victims as well as the accused and the offenders.
