AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 11976 - Currently, privacy protection under Aadhaar is not strong: Pavan Duggal

In 2009, I became extremely concerned with the concept of Unique Identity for various reasons. Connected with many like minded highly educated people who were all concerned.

On 18th May 2010, I started this Blog to capture anything and everything I came across on the topic. This blog with its million hits is a testament to my concerns about loss of privacy and fear of the ID being misused and possible Criminal activities it could lead to.

In 2017 the Supreme Court of India gave its verdict after one of the longest hearings on any issue. I did my bit and appealed to the Supreme Court Judges too through an On Line Petition.

In 2019 the Aadhaar Legislation has been revised and passed by the two houses of the Parliament of India making it Legal. I am no Legal Eagle so my Opinion carries no weight except with people opposed to the very concept.

In 2019, this Blog now just captures on a Daily Basis list of Articles Published on anything to do with Aadhaar as obtained from Daily Google Searches and nothing more. Cannot burn the midnight candle any longer.

"In Matters of Conscience, the Law of Majority has no place"- Mahatma Gandhi

Ram Krishnaswamy

Sydney, Australia.

Aadhaar

The UIDAI has taken two successive governments in India and the entire world for a ride. It identifies nothing. It is not unique. The entire UID data has never been verified and audited. The UID cannot be used for governance, financial databases or anything. It’s use is the biggest threat to national security since independence. – Anupam Saraph 2018

When I opposed Aadhaar in 2010 , I was called a BJP stooge. In 2016 I am still opposing Aadhaar for the same reasons and I am told I am a Congress die hard. No one wants to see why I oppose Aadhaar as it is too difficult. Plus Aadhaar is FREE so why not get one ? Ram Krishnaswamy

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.-Mahatma Gandhi

In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place.Mahatma Gandhi

“The invasion of privacy is of no consequence because privacy is not a fundamental right and has no meaning under Article 21. The right to privacy is not a guaranteed under the constitution, because privacy is not a fundamental right.” Article 21 of the Indian constitution refers to the right to life and liberty -Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi

“There is merit in the complaints. You are unwittingly allowing snooping, harassment and commercial exploitation. The information about an individual obtained by the UIDAI while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose, save as above, except as may be directed by a court for the purpose of criminal investigation.”-A three judge bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar said in an interim order.

Legal scholar Usha Ramanathan describes UID as an inverse of sunshine laws like the Right to Information. While the RTI makes the state transparent to the citizen, the UID does the inverse: it makes the citizen transparent to the state, she says.

Good idea gone bad
I have written earlier that UID/Aadhaar was a poorly designed, unreliable and expensive solution to the really good idea of providing national identification for over a billion Indians. My petition contends that UID in its current form violates the right to privacy of a citizen, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. This is because sensitive biometric and demographic information of citizens are with enrolment agencies, registrars and sub-registrars who have no legal liability for any misuse of this data. This petition has opened up the larger discussion on privacy rights for Indians. The current Article 21 interpretation by the Supreme Court was done decades ago, before the advent of internet and today’s technology and all the new privacy challenges that have arisen as a consequence.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP Rajya Sabha

“What is Aadhaar? There is enormous confusion. That Aadhaar will identify people who are entitled for subsidy. No. Aadhaar doesn’t determine who is eligible and who isn’t,” Jairam Ramesh

But Aadhaar has been mythologised during the previous government by its creators into some technology super force that will transform governance in a miraculous manner. I even read an article recently that compared Aadhaar to some revolution and quoted a 1930s historian, Will Durant.Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha MP

“I know you will say that it is not mandatory. But, it is compulsorily mandatorily voluntary,” Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Saba April 2017.

August 24, 2017: The nine-judge Constitution Bench rules that right to privacy is “intrinsic to life and liberty”and is inherently protected under the various fundamental freedoms enshrined under Part III of the Indian Constitution

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the World; indeed it's the only thing that ever has"

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” -Edward Snowden

In the Supreme Court, Meenakshi Arora, one of the senior counsel in the case, compared it to living under a general, perpetual, nation-wide criminal warrant.

Had never thought of it that way, but living in the Aadhaar universe is like living in a prison. All of us are treated like criminals with barely any rights or recourse and gatekeepers have absolute power on you and your life.

Announcing the launch of the # BreakAadhaarChainscampaign, culminating with events in multiple cities on 12th Jan. This is the last opportunity to make your voice heard before the Supreme Court hearings start on 17th Jan 2018. In collaboration with @no2uidand@rozi_roti.

UIDAI's security seems to be founded on four time tested pillars of security idiocy

1) Denial

2) Issue fiats and point finger

3) Shoot messenger

4) Bury head in sand.

God Save India

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

11976 - Currently, privacy protection under Aadhaar is not strong: Pavan Duggal - DNA India

Currently, privacy protection under Aadhaar is not strong: Pavan Duggal

http://www.dnaindia.com/business/interview-currently-privacy-protection-under-aadhaar-is-not-strong-pavan-duggal-2543248

MANSI TANEJA | Updated: Sep 6, 2017, 07:15 AM IST, DNA

Interview with Cyber law expert and Supreme Court lawyer

The recent Supreme Court judgment that right to privacy is 'intrinsic to life and liberty' may have repercussions on Aadhaar scheme which collects personal details and biometrics for generating a unique identification number. Cyber law expert and Supreme Court lawyer Pavan Duggal, in an interview with Mansi Taneja, said the SC ruling is the 'Dawn of a new beginning' but Aadhaar Act needs to be amended in view of the same as it violates privacy in its current form.

How will the SC judgement on privacy impact the Aadhaar scheme?

The SC judgement will have a direct impact on the Aadhaar scheme. Though the judgement is prospective and people have a fundamental right to privacy, as on this date, Aadhaar data continues to be on a central database. Currently, privacy protection under Aadhaar is not strong as cybersecurity has been just given a lip service. Aadhaar has been walking on thin ice. Since 2009-16, there was no law governing it. It was granted legality presuming that Aadhaar will be voluntary. The Act needs to be amended as Aadhaar has been made mandatory -- for bank accounts, income tax returns and others. SC will now decide privacy matters related to it.

An entire ecosystem has developed around Aadhaar. How secure is it?

This ecosystem around Aadhaar is completely insecure and in its current form, it violates privacy norms. When the Aadhaar Act was passed, it was with the presumption that Aadhaar would be voluntary, so it only talked about the security of the Central Identities Data Repository. The more the cybersecurity, more are chances that privacy of Aadhaar will be protected. There have been many instances of Aadhaar leaks, which show that it is not completely secure. That is why UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) is filing FIRs right, left and centre. No responsibility has been fixed for stakeholders involved in the ecosystem. Also, there is no individual redressal mechanism if there is some breach related to Aadhaar. Aadhaar has cut off the hand of its users. Especially, if your Aadhaar data is compromised, you as an Aadhaar user are not authorised/empowered to report the matter directly to police. Only UIDAI can report the matter to the police. Aadhaar should be made voluntary. Making it mandatory is like putting entire citizens of the country in a river of fire without adequate protection.

Technology is changing rapidly. And at a time when the government is talking about Digital India, where does our Information Technology (IT) Act stand?

The current IT Act is a thoroughly outdated legislation. The last amendments were done in 2008; that too, were changes and all issues were not addressed. Technology has changed so much in the last ten years, the IT Act needs to reflect existing realities of today's world. And in context of Aadhaar, how it is compliant with IT Act, we don't know. Aadhaar is nothing but data and information in an electronic format.

Lastly, how do you think the SC judgement will impact the ongoing case of WhatsApp/Facebook?

The SC ruling does not cover private players. The judgement has only made a right to privacy enforceable against states actions. The IT Act covers third-party service providers, but the government has not specified parameters for privacy protection in it. The government needs to come out with rules and regulations and ask providers to take steps for protection and preserve the privacy of users.