Section 11

Section 11 answers a fundamental question in electronic contracting: when is the originator legally bound by an electronic record they appear to have sent? The provision sets out three circumstances under which attribution to the originator is established. First, direct sending by the originator — the most straightforward case. Second, sending by an authorised agent — a secretary, employee, or representative acting within the scope of their actual or apparent authority. This tracks the general law of agency: the originator is bound by records sent by persons authorised to send them. Third — and most significant for modern e-commerce — sending by an automated information system programmed by or on behalf of the originator. This covers algorithmic trading systems, automated order confirmations, booking systems, chatbots, and API-generated communications. Once a business deploys an automated system, the records it generates are attributed to the business as originator even without any human intervention at the time of sending. The practical implication is that a company cannot disown a contract formed by its own automated system by claiming 'no human authorised that specific communication'. Section 11 works alongside Sections 12 (acknowledgment of receipt) and 13 (time and place of despatch and receipt) to form the complete framework for electronic contract formation under the IT Act — the Indian implementation of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce 1996.