Cancel Your Aadhaar – Govt. Will Soon Allow Aadhaar Users To ‘Opt Out’, Delete Biometric Data
This is for the first time that such a proposal has been sent to the Cabinet to cancel Aadhaar.
Ever since Aadhaar was introduced by UIDAI and Govt. of India, one of the basic premises was that it cannot be canceled.
Once an Aadhaar user has entered the system, he or she couldn’t leave that – only deactivation was possible.
But now, as per fresh reports coming in, this may change soon.
Govt. will now soon allow Aadhaar users to ‘opt out’ from the system, and even delete all biometric data and other information.
How was this made possible? Keep reading to find out..
Aadhaar Data Opt Out: How?
Based on feedback from security analysts and the public at large, Govt. had proposed to UIDAI and Law Ministry that children who turn 18 years should be given a choice: Whether they want Aadhaar or not.
As per the initial proposal, as soon as someone turned 18, he or she should be given 6 months to decide whether Aadhaar should be kept or not.
However, Law Ministry suggested that this choice to opt out should be provided to all citizens.
A senior official said: “The Ministry further recommended that the option to withdraw be made available to all citizens, and not be limited to a particular group,”
Opt Out Of Aadhaar If You Don’t Have PAN Card
Now, this proposal took another turn, when the Govt. suggested that the option to opt out from Aadhaar should be given to those, who have no PAN Card.
The proposal is now being studied by the Cabinet, and a notification would be issued soon: Whether everyone should be allowed to opt out from Aadhaar or only those who don’t have a PAN Card.
How To Delete Aadhaar Biometric Data?
The proposal also covers biometric and other data which resides with the UIDAI of Aadhaar holders.
If the Cabinet passes the proposal, then users would be able to delete their biometric data as well. This can be a huge boost to the advocates of privacy and data, who were concerned about how Aadhaar works.
In September, the Supreme Court had struck down Section 57 of Aadhaar Act, which prohibited private companies from enforcing Aadhaar data linkage with their services (read telecom operators), and to store any form of biometric data.
This proposal to cancel and opt-out from Aadhaar stems from this Supreme Court judgment and supports the theory that citizens should be able to decide whether they want their data with UIDAI or not.
In nutshell, we support this decision.
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