NEW DELHI: Amid a rise in cyber fraud cases involving impersonation and fake government officials, authorities have implemented a QR code-based verification mechanism for enumerators and supervisors visiting households for Census 2027 in the capital. This move aims to make the door-to-door enumeration in Municipal Corporation of Delhi areas, beginning May 16, secure and effective.
According to the sources, all enumerators and supervisors (E&S) deployed for the exercise will carry an appointment letter and an identity card issued by the charge officer. Both documents will have embedded QR codes that residents can scan to verify their authenticity.
“If there is any suspicion, household members can verify the visiting personnel by checking their appointment letter and identity card. They can also scan the QR code printed on these documents to confirm authenticity,” they said.
The safeguard comes when several cyber fraud cases have surfaced across the country. Fraudsters pose as law enforcement or government officials to dupe people using fake documents, impersonation and digital verification requests.
They said recent “digital arrest” scams and fake census-related messages that was circulated online have heightened concerns over impersonation-based fraud.
As part of the ongoing self-enumeration exercise, 93,521 entries were recorded on Monday, of which 77,372 cases were completed and 16,149 were initiated, taking the overall completion rate to 82.73%.
Sources said the layered verification system is expected to make the census process smoother and more reliable while helping households navigate the exercise with greater confidence when concerns over digital fraud remain high.
For verification during field visit
If a household cannot geo-tag its location, it may tag a nearby location instead. In such cases, the enumerator will download the map of the HLB (house listing and housing phase) concerned and all self-enumeration IDs linked to that block for verification during field visits.