Rising data breaches! How to Lock and Unlock your Aadhaar biometric data

The alleged data breach in India that allegedly leaked Aadhaar and other information of 81.5 crore people may seem scary. However, you can still protect your data by locking your biometric data in UIDAI.

On October 31, a report revealed that India's most significant data breach had allegedly occurred recently, which leaked personal information, including 81.5 crore Aadhaar card details, on the dark web. Cybersecurity is becoming an important thing to consider nowadays, as these types of breaches affect us all, regardless of who we are.

Lock your Aadhaar biometric data

According to UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India), biometric lock/unlock is a service that allows the Aadhaar holder to lock and unlock their biometric data temporarily. This facility aims to strengthen the privacy and confidentiality of the resident's biometric data.

Once you lock your biometric data, your fingerprint, iris and face will be locked as a biometric modality. After biometric blocking, the Aadhaar holder will not be able to perform Aadhaar authentication using the biometric modalities mentioned above.

In simple terms, if you do not plan to use biometrics to prove your identity, then it would make sense to lock this data, and it will not be available for the hacker to steal easily, as another layer of protection will appear. Additionally, this protection is also helpful in cases where you believe the attacker may already have this data and could use it to break into systems.

How to lock and unlock your Aadhaar biometric data

1. First, you should go to UIDAI's official portal - https://resident.uidai.gov.in/bio-lock

2. Before proceeding, generate a 16-digit Virtual ID (VID), as only VID can Lock/Unlock the Aadhaar.

3. Return to the above URL and log in with your Aadhaar and OTP.

4. Enter your UID number and the captcha code to proceed.

5. Next, you'll receive an OTP on your registered mobile. Enter that on the computer.

6. Activate the 'Enable locking feature'.

You can also deactivate it using the same method.