There is no data leak, there is no systematic problem but if anyone tries to be smart, then the law ignites into action," said Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on April 10. This was in response to the nationwide outcry after cricketer M S Dhoni's Aadhaar details were made public by an agency that wanted to crow about its association with the former Indian captain.
Eight agencies were blacklisted for a similar breach of privacy, which is barred by Section 29 (4) of the Aadhaar Act. Subsequently multiple breaches of Aadhaar data security have been reported countrywide. In April alone, no less than 10 such instances have been reported. Most of these have been by state and central government agencies which published the private details of millions of welfare scheme beneficiaries. In some cases, access to the data was hurriedly barred after disclosure in the media. But the notable thing is that no official explanation has been given for this open and flagrant disregard for privacy concerns.
It is disingenuous to believe that all these leakages are mere accidental occurrences. This is the result of thinking in the government that there is no harm in regulating citizen access to welfare schemes and much else through the Aadhaar card. We have much evidence to support this view: More and more services have been made Aadhaar-linked in the face of disquiet in civil society: MGNREGA, mid-day meals, Income-Tax returns, pensions and so on.
Now, there is even a laughable proposal to give unique IDs to cows. This attitude of the government has been captured in a tweet from the Unique Identification Authority of India: "Forget Aadhaar, look at what Facebook's doing." This so-what attitude will only fuel suspicions that India is slowly transforming into a surveillance state. Apart from privacy concerns, these leaks could also facilitate welfare fraud and other scams. It is thus important that the state respects its own laws and the Supreme Court.