AN ANALYSIS OF TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT IN THE VIRTUAL WORLD WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON META TAGGING

With the rise in the process of globalisation the use of the internet has also gained traction. Almost anything and everything is carried out on the internet. Also, the recent pandemic has made very clear the importance of online trade and business. However, the associated risks with the borderless virtual world cannot be ignored especially when there are insufficient or no stringent laws to deal with the crimes associated with the same. The situation becomes all the worst when the cyber attackers devise different mechanisms to exploit the reputation and consumer base of the traders. With the rise in the use of internet, the risks and issues associated with it have grown manifold. With respect to online trademark infringement new ways of deceiving consumers and gaining an advantage have taken shape in the form of cybersquatting, meta tagging, spamming, spoofing, linking etc. In the instant paper an attempt has been made to analyse one such cybercrime in relation to online trademark infringement. Firstly, the basics of trademark and its infringement in the real world have been discussed. Secondly, different ways in which trademark infringement takes place in the virtual world have been highlighted with special emphasis on meta tagging. Towards the end, the paper seeks to address some of the issues relating to trademark infringement in the virtual world and provides for possible suggestions.