In less than two months after the UIDAI rubbished reports of biometric data misuse, a simple investigation conducted by The Tribune has revealed that anonymous individuals are selling Aadhaar card details for a nominal sum. A team of reporters found out that they were able to obtain a 'Login ID and username' to a portal that allowed all particulars listed under any given Aadhaar number to access.
Agents running the racket are operating on personal chat platforms to get in touch with potential buyers. A report created by the group of journalists said that they were able to immediate access to personal details including name, address, photograph, email ID, and the mobile phone number of an individual listed by the UIDAI. Based on the fact that the WhatsApp groups were formed six months ago, and that it comprises of over 3 Lakh village-level enterprise (VLE) operators, is estimated that the racket began six months ago. These VLEs were hired by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and were given the job of making Aadhaar cards available across rural sectors of the country.
The operators were however, found useless in November, after which the UIDAI entrusted the task of making Aadhaar cards to just banks and post offices to avoid a breach of data. It has also been reported that an additional amount of Rs 300 will fetch a copy of the software that allows the Aadhaar card of an individual to be printed after entering the Aadhaar number on the portal.
Sanjay Jindal, Additional Director-General, UIDAI Regional Centre has expressed concerns over the revelations. “Except the Director-General and I, no third person in Punjab should have a login access to our official portal. Anyone else having access is illegal, and is a major national security breach,” he said.
