The Unique Identification Authority of India on Wednesday filed First Information Reports against eight websites for collecting Aadhaar-related data from citizens in an unauthorised manner, PTI reported. This is the first time the organisation has filed an official complaint against the misuse of Aadhaar data.
The eight websites are adhaarupdate.com, aadhaarindia.com, pvcaadhaar.in, aadhaarprinters.com, geteaadhaar.com, downloadaadhaarcard.in, aadharcopy.in, and duplicateaadharcard.com. The case also brings to the fore the possibility of Aadhaar-related data, which includes a person’s biometric information, being misused by unscrupulous agents.
“We found that even after we ordered the shutting down of some unauthorised websites, some new websites had come up. This time, we lodged an FIR against the erring websites,” UIDAI’s Chief Executive Officer Ajay Bhushan Pandey told the news agency.
The UIDAI administers the centralised database that stores the information of 112 crore people who have enrolled for Aadhaar.
Earlier, too, the UIDAI had shut down several websites and applications offering Aadhaar-related services to prevent citizens from being harassed. In March this year, an Aadhaar enrolment agency had been de-registered for leaking the personal data of cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni. His wife, Sakshi, had brought the breach to the notice of Information and Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Twitter after e-governance firm Common Services Centre had shared the details on the social media platform.
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