Safeguards in place to protect sensitive information: Govt on IAF-Uber MoU

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Various cyber security safeguards are in place to protect sensitive information and the location of Indian Air Force personnel and their families as part of an agreement recently signed between the IAF and Uber, the government has said.

Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth said this in response to a query in Rajya Sabha on whether the government has assessed the "potential data privacy and security risks" arising from the MoU signed between the IAF and Uber for transportation services of IAF personnel, veterans, and their families.

The MoU was entered into to provide efficient and safe mobility services for the welfare of personnel (serving as well as retired) and their families, the minister said in his response on November 25.

The MoU and Mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement (MNDA) was signed on October 17, 2024, he said.

Seth was also asked to share details of any specific measures being put in place to protect the location data of IAF members and prevent tracking of operational bases and movement patterns by unauthorised entities, and if protocols have been established to restrict third-party access to sensitive data related to IAF personnel through this arrangement.

"The only data to be shared under the MoU was the e-mail IDs which were other than the official e-mail IDs," he said.

The Union minister added that various cyber security safeguards are in place to "protect sensitive information/location of IAF personnel and their families".

During the usage of the Uber app by IAF personnel, the data is "being encrypted both at rest and during transit using AES 256 encryption" and "only civil e-mail IDs are shared by IAF with Uber. Personnel are identified through the given email ID and no other attribute," Seth said.

"Uber will carry out an annual cyber audit and render a report to IAF. Also, IAF has the option to carry out snap checks for the same," the minister added.