Facing the safety concerns

With each passing day, the Unique Authority of India (UIDAI) is upping the safety measures for the much-debated Aadhaar card.

While many in the city have got their Aadhaar card in place and have no qualms about linking transactions and services to the ID,  others have been contesting the security standards of the same.

A  few days after a virtual ID option for the card was announced, face recognition will be an additional safety measure.

This has drawn mixed responses. Social media community manager Aakash Nambiar is puzzled about the  number of security additions to the Aadhaar card. "Just a few days  after the 16-digit number virtual ID  came into the  scenario, now  your face comes to the rescue. Earlier, there was the iris and fingerprint recognition which by itself was a hassle. I am not sure how many people will be able to accept all these additional layers of security," he adds.

With advancements in technology, there needs to be more upgradations to any system but additional features also mean more security risks and  loopholes, he says.

"This is a complicated safety upgrade. Take for example, my face does not look anything like the photograph in my Aadhaar card. I wonder how the system will be able to identify me and authenticate my credentials," he says.  

How a farmer or rural citizen would be up to date with  all these changes is yet another doubt Aakash raises.

"All citizens should be informed about all the steps the UIDAI intends to implement through local bodies. There should be a definite decision about what steps the UIDAI  intends to bring in along the way," he says.  

There are many elderly Aadhaar holders  for whom  facial recognition  
will come as a saviour, feels Sachin Sethi, a businessman.

"This is an additional layer of security which will overcome limitations of the iris and fingerprint authentication  and will help the elderly in accessing services," says Sachin.

Since the face recognition feature will have to be accessed through a mobile phone or laptop, the confusion  about how secure the data is still persists.

"As we move towards  a digital era and come out with more security features,  there are miscreants who are finding ways to access private information and misuse it. A foolproof plan will have to worked out for this," he adds.    

There are others who are welcoming the new move  with conviction.

Vidya Ramamurthy, an entrepreneur, says that this move will fill in all the gaps that existed in  the earlier security measures.

According to her, this measure comes as a blessing to people who suffer from  ailments like leprosy or skin diseases, underwent  an amputation recently, are visually challenged or have diluted pupils.

"Facial recognition is a foolproof  step as it is not possible to replicate  facial features. No two faces are alike and thus this is a smart  move by the authority. It is high time that we reach global security standards and this is a
step forward.  This move will also embrace all sections of people and gives out a larger message of treating everyone at par," she adds.

Vidya expresses her concern about people who are not able to access technological devices for this safety upgrade.

"Hopefully Bangalore One and other such centres will help everyone use this additional measure," she adds.