He also believes that by opting for biometrics instead of smart cards the government is using surveillance technology instead of e-governance technology. 'We warned the government six years ago, but they ignored us,' Sunil Abraham, executive director of Bengaluru-based research organisation, Centre for Internet and Society, was quoted by The Hindu Business Line as saying.ДЄccording to him, the legislation implementing Aadhaar has almost no data protection guarantees for citizens. Critics say, biometrics only make the citizen transparent to the State and that it does not make the State transparent to citizens. It even introduced a flurry of steps to make sure that the database is safe and secure, and that the data is protected.В But not everyone is convinced. Since then, the UIDAI and every other government machinery have been in top gear, trying to allay the fears around Aadhaar.

A recent investigation by The Tribune revealed that the details of any of the billion Aadhaar numbers issued in India were accessible for as little as Rs 500. However,В worst fears about Aadhaar have come true after the developments that have happened over the past few weeks. The sheer amount of private and confidential data amassed in one singular database has given rise to concerns over data security and its privacy. The Aadhaar of today, in addition to basic personal information, includes biometric data like your fingerprints, your iris scan and now even your facial scans (albeit introduced as a safety feature).В This is designed to address the issue of failed biometric authentication, as an alternative for people having difficulty authenticating, due to factors like worn out fingerprints, or changing biometric data due to old age, hard work conditions, accidents and the like.Д«ut what it fails to address is the growing unease among citizens about the scale of the project, its intent, and the actual legality of enabling such an architecture, which could threaten the citizens with the possibility of State surveillance. At the heart of this issue is the sheer quantity of data being amassed as part of the scheme and the many privacy and security concerns generated as a result of it. What started as a unique identification number to streamline the distribution of welfare to the needy has now turned into an all-pervasive tool that can arm the government with sensitive data of all Indians. This database contains both the demographic as well as biometric data of the citizens. The Aadhaar database is one of the largest government databases on the planet, where a 12 digit unique-identity number has been assigned to the majority of the Indian citizens. So, if you are an Indian adult, chances are that you possess an Aadhaar card by now. The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court is testing the constitutional validity of a scheme that has been around in one shape or another since 2003, ever since the need for an identification project was first felt.Д«y the government's own estimates, the Aadhaar initiative has covered 98 percent of the adult population in India and, as of 7 September, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has generated cards for 105.11 crore people. Depending on who you ask, the Aadhaar is either a convenience or a curse.

All pervasive