ONLY A SUPERCOMP CAN HACK AADHAAR
Aadhaar robust, nationally on-line verifiable ID: UIDAI to SC
Aadhaar data has been secured by a 2048-bit encryption key that will take a supercomputer more than the age of universe, or over 13 billion years, to crack, Ajay Bhushan Pandey, the chief of UIDAI which runs the identification programme, told the Supreme Court on Thursday, online media reports said.
Pandey, who made an 80-minute rare presentation before the five judges of the top court, said once any Aadhaar data reached its central database, it could not be shared with anyone except on grounds of national security.
The bench then referred to the allegation that there was a possibility of tampering of data as the software has been taken from outside. "These are our software and developed by us," the CEO said, adding that only biometric matching software has been taken from three best companies and these were licenced software which ran the system. Moreover, the Aadhaar software is not linked to internet because "we were aware some people may hack the system," Pandey said.
Responding to queries on the authentication process, he said the UIDAI is "blind" and does not keep track of any transaction done by using the Aadhaar card. "If somebody opens a bank account or gets a mobile phone by using the Aadhaar, the UIDAI cannot know the account details or the phone number," he said, adding that no profiling can be done by using the Aadhaar.
Seeking to allay apprehensions raised, the CEO said Aadhaar provided a "robust, lifetime, reusable, nationally online verifiable ID" card to citizens, even as the Supreme Court posed several queries.
It referred to the allegation of senior advocate Shyam Divan and asked why 49,000 certified private operators, out of a total 6.83 lakh who carried out Aadhaar enrolment, have been blacklisted by UIDAI. "Aadhaar enrolment is free. They charge people. We got complaints," the CEO said, adding that these operators also filled wrong details at the time of enrolment and "as we have a zero tolerance policy towards corruption, they were blacklisted."