This is How Your Aadhaar Data Is Secured

The Aadhaar Card has evolved into a critical financial instrument, closely linked to your financial transactions, tax information, bank information, and much more. Without an Aadhaar Card, it is nearly impossible to carry out a number of basic financial transactions.

While it has become absolutely necessary to obtain an Aadhaar Card, concerns have been raised about the security of the Aadhaar database. People have claimed on numerous occasions that the Aadhaar database, including biometric details (fingerprint and iris data), is vulnerable to theft and hacking due to a lack of security infrastructure. Some critics have even gone so far as to claim that Aadhaar information for a large number of people can be obtained through a simple Google search.

Individual information is inherently protected in the UID project's design, which is principally accomplished by the allocation of random 12-digit numbers that reveal nothing about an individual. In addition, UID has taken a number of other steps to protect the interests of citizens while also achieving its goal of data security and collecting. The following are some of the most important data security measures:

Only own secure servers are used to store and process Aadhaar data:

The Aadhaar issuing authority, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), stated that such data is only accessible to the biometric software provider's solution for the purpose of data processing inside the highly secure environment of the UIDAI data center.

Only the UIDAI's servers within its data center store, keep, and process Aadhaar data. Furthermore, these systems have no connections to the outside world via the Internet or any other methods, including laptops and pen drives, according to the report.

Data Centers' Physical Security:

UIDAI safeguards the physical security of data centers through robust hardware testing to avoid any form of breach. Hardware supplies are tested twice to find and repair any problems.

Furthermore, neither the solutions provider nor its staff have access to the biometric image data collected during Aadhaar enrollment. The biometric service provider must rigorously adhere to the contract's data security criteria set forth by the government.

The apps that run on UIDAI's IT hardware are well-protected by an intrusion detection and prevention system. To put it another way, the government has put advanced technologies in place to reduce the chance of a physical or electronic data breach.

High Encryption and Open-Source Technology:

A hacker isn't always the source of a security breach threat. Breach can occur as a result of third-party activity, such as private contractors and vendors. The Aadhaar platform relies heavily on open-source technology to prevent sensitive data from being leaked. The use of proprietary technology ensures that data is protected from third-party vendors and private contractors.

One of the most important pillars of data security is high-level encryption.

PKI-2048 and AES-256 are used to encrypt Aadhaar data. These are one of the most secure public key encryptions available. No system or person has access to the enrolment data packets because they are stored in PKI encrypted form.

Secure Aadhaar data with Aadhaar data Vault:

The UIDAI has introduced the concept of an Aadhaar data vault, which is a centralized storage facility for all Aadhaar numbers obtained by authorized agencies. According to the UIDAI, the goal of the Aadhaar data vault is to minimize the footprint of Aadhaar numbers within an organization's systems and environment, lowering the risk of unauthorized access.

It is a secure system within the infrastructure of the respective agency that is only accessible to those with a need-to-know basis. UIDAI requires that Aadhaar Numbers and any associated Aadhaar data be stored in a separate database/vault/system. The Aadhaar Data Vault will be the only location where the Aadhaar Number and any associated Aadhaar data will be kept.

Advantages of Aadhaar Data Vault:

• Aadhaar Data Vault enables users to easily comply with UIDAI's dynamic guidelines without fear of future changes.
• The solution's automatic key management, access control, and policy management
• API-based solutions assist organizations in integrating with other lines of business for easy and seamless integration
• Secure and centralize storage for Aadhaar Data.
• The Aadhaar Data Vault is easily integrated with current apps due to its secure REST API.
• Strong access controls and necessary alerts make it auditable.
• Accessible on a need-to-know basis only
• Supports database encryption to protect data even if the database as a whole is compromised.

Source: Medium