"Under compulsion, millions of persons have already shared Aadhaar number with many service providers."
Commenting on UIDAI's desperate measure to save face in wake of reports of massive data breach, former Union Finance Minister and Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Thursday said that the "new security layer is like locking the stable after horses have bolted".
"Under compulsion, millions of persons have already shared Aadhaar number with many service providers. New security layer is like locking the stable after horses have bolted," he said in a tweet.
The UIDAI on Wednesday introduced a new security layer to address the privacy concerns related to Aadhaar. The "virtual ID" , the agency said, can be used in lieu of the 12-digit Aadhaar number at the time of authentication for any service.
The Virtual ID together with biometrics of the user would give any authorised agency, say, a mobile company, limited details like name, address and photograph, which are enough for any verification.
The move came after media investigation published by The Tribune newspaper raised serious questions on security issues pertaining Aadhaar.
The investigative report titled "Rs 500, 10 minutes, and you have access to billion Aadhaar details"by The Tribune had revealed that details of Aadhaar is easily accessible, that too just by paying Rs 500.
According to the newspaper, its reporter purchased a service by anonymous sellers on WhatsApp and paid Rs 500 via Paytm to an agent of the group running a racket. The agent then created a "gateway" for the reporter and gave a login ID and password, thus giving unrestricted access to details, including name, address, postal code (PIN), photo, phone number and email, of more than 1 billion Aadhaar numbers submitted to the UIDAI, the Aadhaar issuing body.