An officer of the Company shall not be liable to punishment, for contravention of any of the provisions…

Under the proviso to section 85(1) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, a person in charge of a company is not liable to punishment if he proves that "The contravention took place without his knowledge or he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention".

Ignorance of the Act is no defence, and misconduct by the person affected is irrelevant. Liability for consent, connivance or neglect under section 85(2) is separate.