UIDAI open to looking at solutions on 'partial authentication': CEO

UIDAI is open to looking at solutions that can enable 'partial authentication' where needed, and is keen to get feedback from the industry about the demand for such solutions, CEO Saurabh Garg said

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is open to looking at solutions that can enable 'partial authentication' where needed, and is keen to get feedback from the industry about the demand for such solutions, its CEO Saurabh Garg said on Tuesday.

The Aadhaar-issuing body is also exploring possibilities for the usage of blockchain and quantum computing, as it marches ahead towards the 'Aadhaar 2.0' vision.

"We are also open to looking at what is called partial authentication. Some people might only want to verify the age, they are not looking at anything more than that.

"These are things that we also want to get feedback from the industry...what is the kind of demand there is, and we can accordingly create...might be just the age you want to verify," Garg said.

He was speaking at the India Digital Summit 2022, organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).

Citing another example of 'partial authentication' requirement, Garg said verification may only be needed for confirming whether a person is a resident of a particular area, and not the full address per se.

"Someone just wants to verify whether that the person is living in that area and they don't want address but they just want a confirmation whether that person is a resident of that area...these are kinds of services, where we have not yet developed the solutions but would be open to looking at," Garg said.

Garg further said that over five crore Aadhaar authentications are taking place per day and over 40 crore last-mile banking transactions are being done every month through the Aadhaar-enabled payment system (AePS).

Talking about Aadhaar 2.0, he said it will ensure faster automated biometric matching solutions, with a primary focus on the security of the ecosystem. He said the authority is exploring possibilities for leveraging blockchain and quantum computing.

"We are looking at what blockchain has to offer, and whether blockchain can be utilised in any manner for making decentralised-level solutions...it is for something in future but it is on our horizon.

"In quantum computing, we need to look at whether there are quantum resilient security solutions," he said.

Security-related aspects are "paramount", he said adding that UIDAI is working constantly on improving information security and cyber security.

Services such as 'eSign' and 'Digilocker' offer tremendous opportunities for start-ups, he added.