Know your Aadhaar and what it holds

Aadhaar is a unique identification number issued to Indian residents based on their demographic and biometric data. The purpose of the scheme is to provide a digital identity to support various government schemes and databases, while preventing duplicate entries and ensuring that only genuine residents are enrolled in these programs. In other words, it aims to revolutionize the way India identifies its citizens.?

The Aadhaar card program has been mired in controversy since its inception in March 2016. The primary issue with the program is privacy: Millions of Indians have no choice but to give their personal details when signing up for an Aadhaar card because they cannot get one without providing proof of residence. However, sometimes the benefits outweigh the risks. When used as intended, Aadhaar can help save lives by verifying whether someone who has fallen ill at a hospital or housing society has made it home safely after treatment, for example. Additionally, there are also many benefits that come with using an electronic national identity system—from less administrative red tape for government departments to faster access to financial services and digital discounts from merchants—that should make every Indian happy about being part of this program.

What is Aadhaar?

Aadhaar is a 12-digit individual identification number issued on behalf of the Government of India by the Unique Identification Authority of India. The number can be used to prove one's identity and address anywhere in India.

• Every Indian individual, including children and infants, has a 12-digit unique identity.
• allows each resident Indian to be identified.
• Based on demographic and biometric data, each individual's uniqueness is determined.
• It is a voluntary service that any resident, regardless of documentation, can use.
• Each person will be assigned a single Aadhaar ID number.
• Aadhaar will provide a universal identity infrastructure that any identity-based application can use.
• Any identity authentication query will be answered with a yes-or-no response from UIDAI.

How does Aadhaar Work?

Aadhaar numbers are unique to each individual and are valid for life. In due course, residents will be able to use their Aadhaar number to access various services, such as banking, mobile phone connections, and other government and non-government services.

Also Aadhaar is:

• Cost-effective online demographic information verification
• unique and robust enough to eliminate the large number of duplicate and forged identities in public and private databases.
• A random number is generated with no regard for caste, creed, religion, or geography.

The Need for Aadhaar

• Identification Card: It comprises biometric information such as fingerprints and an iris picture, as well as a QR code that may be scanned to validate the information. Address, age, identity, and residency proofIt serves as proof of identification, age, residence, and date of birth for services such as house loans, investments, financial and non-financial services, personal loans, the purchase and sale of properties and assets, and even ITR.
• Government Subsidy:The Aadhar Card is connected directly to the bank account in order to get government benefits under various programs.Savings AccountsIt is also required to link your bank account to an email address.
• Income Tax: The Income Tax Department has made linking Aadhaar to PAN and filing ITR applications mandatory for Indian taxpayers.according to Section 139AA of the Income Tax Act.This implies that the financial entity with whom you are communicating will be able to authenticate your source of income and the strength of your company or professional stability using your Aadhar number.
• Phone and Gas Connectivity: All telecom firms in India have made it mandatory to give phone lines after attaching individual Aadhaar as confirmation of identity and address. The same goes for getting a new gas connection.
• Mutual Funds and Insurance Companies: The Insurance Regulatory Authority of India (IRDAI) deemed Aadhaar essential for insurance plans in 2017, but reversed its position the following year, making Aadhaar optional. To make any investments in the market, it is necessary to provide an Aadhar Card and complete the e-KYC process, as stipulated by SEBI.
• Stock Exchanges: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has mandated that a list of main market entities, including stock exchanges, central depositories, and stock market service providers, register with the UIDAI in order to use Aadhaar to verify customers. In its May 2020 circular, SEBI asked all registered intermediaries and mutual fund distributors who wish to use Aadhaar to authenticate investors who want to trade stocks to register with the UIDAI through their respective central bodies.
• Register as an MSME: As part of the relief and credit support for MSMEs affected by the coronavirus epidemic, the Indian government announced new guidelines for small enterprises to be classified as Micro, Small, and Medium Businesses (MSME) in May 2020. The government stated that an Aadhaar number will be necessary for the Udyam Registration procedure in order to register your business as an MSME.
• Retirement: The government of India has authorized identification of an employee's personal and bank data using Aadhaar to withdraw, pay, and transfer provident fund claims online.The Government of India permits you to generate a Universal Account Number (UAN), which is a 12-digit number that remains consistent throughout an employee's career and is transferable. This number may be associated with Adhaar to get access to funds digitally.

Privacy and security concerns around Aadhaar

• Identity theft: Since biometrics are not confidential information, Aadhaar is subject to illicit biometric harvesting and identity fraud. The danger is increased by the possibility of biometric and demographic data leakage, either from the central Aadhaar repository or through a point-of-sale or enrollment device.
• Using Aadhaar data for identification without consent: There might be unlawful use of biometrics to identify persons. Inappropriate matching of fingerprints, iris scans, or facial images kept in the Aadhaar database or utilizing demographic data to identify persons without their knowledge and in contravention of legal rules are examples of such infractions.
• Identity correlation across domains: Individuals' activities across several domains of service may be tracked using their global Aadhaar IDs, which are valid across these domains.
• Individuals are being tracked illegally: People may be followed or monitored without adequate authority or legal approval by using the authentication and identity records and trails in the Aadhar database or the databases of one or more authentication-requesting entities. These records may expose information on the place, time, and context of authentication, as well as the services used.

Critics of Aadhaar?

The fundamental point of contention between the NDA and detractors of the Aadhaar scheme was one of privacy. Aadhaar has a slew of security flaws, and the system has repeatedly proven to be vulnerable to both internal breaches and external data exploitation.

• When used only as a photo ID, it becomes more susceptible to duplication or forgery since it lacks any standard security measures seen in other photo IDs, such as a microchip, hologram, or official stamp.
• The purpose of authentication is not recorded in Aadhaar. Authentication without authorization and accounting exposes users to significant fraud risks, as authentication or KYC intended for one purpose may be used for another.

There are certain cases and incidents where users involuntarily need to share details and some mishappenings occur making it a hot topic for controversies.?