Aadhaar checks: UIDAI plans rule to mandate registration for verifiers; push paperless verification – The Times of India

Aadhaar-based verification is set to move further away from paper trails, with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) preparing to notify a new rule mandating registration of entities that seek offline Aadhaar verification, reported PTIThe proposed rule aims to discourage practices such as hotels, event organisers and similar entities collecting photocopies of Aadhaar cards and storing them physically — a process that is already in contravention of the Aadhaar Act, a senior government official told PTI.UIDAI chief executive officer Bhuvnesh Kumar said the authority has approved a framework under which entities seeking offline Aadhaar verification will be required to register. Once registered, they will gain access to new technology tools that allow verification through QR code scanning or via a new Aadhaar app currently under development.“The new rule has been approved by the authority and will be notified soon. It will mandate registration of offline verification-seeking entities like hotels, event organisers. The objective is to discourage paper-based Aadhaar verification,” Kumar said.He said the move will also address operational issues caused by downtime of intermediary servers that connect entities to the central Aadhaar database. Under the revised system, registered entities will be provided access to application programming interfaces (APIs) to integrate offline Aadhaar verification into their systems.UIDAI is also beta-testing a new app that will enable app-to-app Aadhaar verification without requiring connection to the central Aadhaar database for each transaction. The app is expected to be used in places such as airports and retail outlets selling age-restricted products.“The ease of verification will enhance offline verification without the use of paper while maintaining privacy of users or any risk of their Aadhaar data getting leaked for misuse,” Kumar said.According to him, the app is expected to fine-tune Aadhaar authentication services in line with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, which is slated to become fully operational within the next 18 months.The app will also allow users to update address proof documents and add family members to the same platform, including those who do not own a mobile phone, he added.