BSA 2023 and Electronic Evidence: The Section 63 Certificate
Section 63 BSA explained: when electronic evidence needs a certificate, who signs it, what the Schedule form asks, and how screenshots and chats get admitted.
In short
- Since 1 July 2024 the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam replaces the Evidence Act; section 63 is the new home of the rule on electronic records.
- An original device produced in court is primary evidence; printouts, copies and exports are admissible only with a section 63 certificate.
- The certificate must identify the record, describe how it was produced, confirm the conditions in section 63(2), and be signed by the person in charge of the device and an expert, in the Schedule form.
- The Schedule form asks for a hash value; compute one for every file you intend to rely on and record the algorithm.
- Preserve first, certify later: keep the device, do not delete chats, and note where each item came from and when.
Who this is for: Victims preparing a case, their lawyers, investigators and students who need to know exactly when the certificate is required, who signs it and what goes in it.
A folder of screenshots feels like proof. In a courtroom it is nothing until the section 63 BSA requirements are met, because the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 treats a copy of an electronic record as admissible only on conditions, and the certificate is how those conditions are shown. This guide explains when the certificate is needed, who signs it, what goes in it, and what a victim should do now so that the certificate can be prepared later.
Section numbers are quoted for orientation. The text of the BSA, including the Schedule with the certificate form, is on indiacode.nic.in; check it before preparing anything for court.
Why electronic evidence has its own rule
A paper letter is produced in court as itself. A WhatsApp chat exists as data on a phone, on the sender's phone and on a server, and what reaches the court is usually a printout or a file copied elsewhere. The law's concern is that copies can be edited, incomplete or taken from a malfunctioning device. The Evidence Act of 1872 handled this through section 65B, inserted in 2000 alongside the IT Act. The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, in force from 1 July 2024, carries the rule into section 63 with changes.
Three provisions work together. Section 57 says what counts as primary evidence and includes, by explanation, electronic records stored in multiple places or produced from a proper custody. Section 61 says electronic records shall not be denied admissibility merely because they are electronic. Section 62 says the contents of electronic records are proved in accordance with section 63. So the question for any piece of digital material is: is this the original (primary evidence), or a copy that needs the section 63 route?
What section 63 BSA requires
| Sub-section | What it does | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| 63(1) | Information in an electronic record that is printed, stored, recorded or copied is deemed a document and admissible without the original, if the conditions in 63(2) are met. | Printouts, PDFs and exports can come in, on conditions. |
| 63(2) | The four conditions: the device was regularly used for the activity; the information was regularly fed in during ordinary use; the device was operating properly, or any fault did not affect the record; the output reproduces the information. | Your phone, used normally, with the chat as it arrived, usually satisfies these. |
| 63(3) | Records produced by several devices, in combination or over a network, are treated as produced by a single device. | Cloud backups, synced devices and server copies are covered. |
| 63(4) | The certificate: identifies the record, describes how it was produced, gives device particulars, addresses the 63(2) conditions, is signed by the person in charge and an expert, and is in the form set out in the Schedule. | The document you or your lawyer will prepare, with the Schedule form. |
The Schedule form. The certificate form annexed to the BSA has Part A, for the party producing the record, and Part B, for the expert, and asks for the hash value of the record and the algorithm used. Compute a hash for every file you will rely on, record it with the date, and keep the original file unchanged. (Source: BSA, 2023, Schedule; verify at indiacode.nic.in.)
Primary evidence, or a copy?
If the phone on which the messages were received can be produced in court and examined, the messages on it are primary evidence under section 57 and no certificate is needed for the device itself. In practice, courts, police and lawyers work from printouts and exports, and the phone may be seized, lost or replaced before trial. The safe assumption is that whatever reaches the court will be a copy, and that a section 63 certificate will be required. The Supreme Court's 2020 ruling under the old section 65B, holding the certificate mandatory for secondary electronic evidence and not curable by oral testimony, is the background that section 63 inherits; the judgment is on sci.gov.in.
Who signs, and when
Section 63(4) names two signatories: a person occupying a responsible official position in relation to the operation of the device or the management of the relevant activities, and an expert. For a victim's own phone, the first is the victim. For a bank statement, it is the bank's officer, which is why a certified statement obtained from the branch is worth more than an app screenshot. For platform data obtained by police under BNSS section 94, it is the platform's nodal officer. The expert signature is new, and how it is satisfied for routine material is still settling in practice; for anything that will be contested, a forensic examiner's report with its own certificate is the standard answer.
Timing matters less than people fear. The certificate is prepared when the record is produced in court, not when the crime is reported. At the complaint stage, a plain note of provenance (which device, which app, when saved, by whom) is enough, and it is what makes a later certificate truthful. Our guide to preserving digital evidence sets out that note.
Preserve now so you can certify later
Before anyone touches the evidence
- Keep the device. Do not reset, sell or "clean" the phone that received the messages.
- Do not delete chats, even embarrassing ones; a gap in a thread invites a challenge.
- Export full conversations where the app allows, with media, rather than relying on screenshots alone.
- Screenshot with the sender's number or username, the date and the time visible.
- Save files to a folder you do not edit; compute a hash (SHA-256 is standard) for each and write it down with the date.
- Get bank statements as certified copies from the bank, not only from the app.
- Record who handled each item and when; that chain is what the certificate attests to.
For serious cases, a forensic image of the device by a laboratory, with its own hash and report, is the strongest form. Under BNSS section 176(3), forensic examination is mandated for offences punishable with seven years or more, which includes cheating under BNS section 318(4) and extortion under section 308. Our digital evidence and forensic report service produces the preserved copy, the hash record and the Part A draft for your lawyer.
Where this fits in the case
The certificate is a trial-stage document, but the habits that make it possible start in the first hour. The FIR and the sections that carry the case are in our guides to filing an FIR for cyber fraud and the BNS sections used in cyber cases; the court process, including when evidence is produced, is in how to file a cyber crime case in court. The IT Act side, including the original 2000 amendments that first recognised electronic records, is in our IT Act explainer, and the vocabulary is in the glossary. If you are starting from a phone full of messages and a bank SMS, do the checklist above tonight; the section 63 BSA certificate can follow once the rest is safe.
Frequently asked questions
When is a section 63 BSA certificate required?
Whenever you rely on information from an electronic record in a form other than the original device: a printout of a chat, a PDF of a bank statement, a screenshot saved to another phone, an export from a platform. Section 63(1) deems such copies to be documents, admissible without producing the original, if the conditions in 63(2) are met and a certificate under 63(4) accompanies them.
Who signs the certificate?
Section 63(4) requires the certificate to be signed by a person in charge of the computer or communication device, or the management of the relevant activities, and an expert. For your own phone, you are the person in charge. The Schedule form has Part A for the party and Part B for the expert. Who qualifies as an expert in routine cases is still being settled in practice; ask your lawyer.
What does the certificate have to say?
It must identify the electronic record and describe how it was produced, give particulars of the device involved, and deal with the conditions in section 63(2): that the device was regularly used, that the information was regularly fed in, that the device was operating properly, and that the output reproduces the original. The Schedule form adds the hash value and algorithm.
Is this different from the old section 65B?
Same purpose, updated text. Section 65B of the Evidence Act required a certificate from the person in charge; the Supreme Court held in 2020 that it was mandatory for secondary electronic evidence. Section 63 of the BSA carries the rule forward, adds the expert signature and the prescribed Schedule form, and expressly covers records stored in semiconductor memory and across networks.
Can I prepare the certificate myself?
Part A, yes, if you are the person in charge of the device and you fill it truthfully. Part B needs an expert. For a small bank-dispute or a complaint, a plain statement of provenance is enough at the filing stage; the formal certificate is prepared when the material is to be produced in court. Do not backdate or guess; the certificate is a statement you can be cross-examined on.
If you want help with this
- Digital evidence and forensic report · Screenshots, chats, emails and recordings only help if they will be accepted. We preserve digital evidence properly, analyse what it shows, and certify it under section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam.
- Cyber crime investigation fundamentals · training · A three-day course for police, legal professionals and compliance teams on investigating financial cyber crime in India, from the first complaint to money trail, platform requests, evidence and charge sheet.
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