UIDAI strengthens security for Aadhaar holders

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on Wednesday introduced 'Virtual ID' (VID) and limited 'Know Your Customer' (KYC) service for Aadhaar holders in a bid to address privacy concerns.

With the introduction of 'Virtual ID', a fungible number mapped to the Aadhaar number, holders will be given an option to not share their 12-digit biometric code, stated UIDAI in a notification.

It will be a temporary and revocable 16-digit, randomly-generated number, which will be used for authentication. Moreover, it will not be possible to derive the Aadhaar number from VID.

The VID of the user would give any authorised agency like a mobile company, limited details like name, address and photograph. It will not be possible to locate one's Aadhaar number based on this ID.

Additionally, as per the UIDAI, agencies that undertake authentication would not be allowed to generate the VID on behalf of the Aadhaar holder.

It can only be generated by the Aadhaar number holder and the UIDAI will provide various options to the holders to generate, retrieve, and replace the VID.

While the VID allows Aadhar holders to avoid sharing the number, the UIDAI has taken an additional step to ensure that the storage of Aadhaar numbers within various databases is regulated.

The limited KYC will allow agencies to undertake a paperless KYC process without access to the Aadhaar number.

The Aadhaar-issuing body will start accepting Virtual ID from March 1, 2018.

It will be compulsory for all agencies that undertake authentication to accept the Virtual ID from their users from June 1, 2018.