Aadhaar controversy continues to rage
26 Mar 2018
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Aadhaar continues to be the ‘foundation’ – the literal translation of the Hindi word – for many of the controversies surrounding the BJP-led, NDA government, in Delhi
A report in ZDNet, a leading international business technology website, has revealed a new data leak hitting Aadhaar, India’s national ID database, which “affects potentially every Indian citizen” subscribed to it.The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which manages Aadhaar, the world’s largest biometric ID system, denied there had been any breach in its database. “Aadhaar remains safe and secure,” asserted the UIDAI. “Even if the claim purported in the story were taken as true, it would raise security concerns on database of that utility company and has nothing to do with the security of UIDAI’s Aadhaar database.”
UIDAI, which described the ZDNet claim as “totally baseless, false and irresponsible,” is also planning to take legal action against ZDNet for carrying the report.
According to UIDAI, “mere availability of Aadhaar number with a third person will not be a security threat to the Aadhaar holder or will not lead to financial / other fraud, as for any transaction, a successful authentication through fingerprint, Iris or OTP of the Aadhaar holder is required.”
Meanwhile, union minister Alphons Kannanthanam, who has been under flak for his controversial statements of late, continued to wade into the Aadhaar controversy.
The minister, referring to the Aadhaar controversy, had said in Thiruvananthapuram, “We have no problems in putting our fingerprints and whole body naked in front of a white man. When I was filling the application form for the US visa, I had to fill 10 pages of data, including where my grandfather was born, where I had travelled to in the last 10 years and for what purpose.”
According to him, “when the government of India asks for the name and address, then there is a massive revolution in the country saying it is an intrusion into the privacy of the individual.”
While critics slammed him for his remarks, the minister reiterated his sentiment.
