More awareness needed on cyber security, not sure of privacy of Aadhaar data: DSCI chief

While the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) will vouch for the privacy and security of Aadhaar information at its data centres, experts fear a breach might occur at the point of enrollment itself. “Data centres, I would like to believe, are well secured from external intrusions, however, we cannot be sure about the enrollment centres across the country.

By Debashis Sarkar

The information which is shared at the time of enrollment may get compromised while it reaches the data centre,” said Dr. Kamlesh Bajaj, CEO, Data Security Council of India in an exclusive interaction with IndianExpress.com.

Also, the procedure and the devices used by the enrollment agencies have been reportedly to be one of the major weaknesses of the Aadhaar project. Around 70.43 crore Aadhaar numbers were generated by UIDAI till November 15, 2014.

Asserting on the need to spread awareness on cyber security, Bajaj feels important industry sectors in the country are still not paying much attention on data security. “Banks in India are well secured compared to other important sectors like manufacturing and power. Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the body which manages IT of the Indian Railways, to a certain extent is paying heed to secure themselves. However, a lot needs to be done,” said Bajaj.

While the Indian IT industry might have adequate information security professionals,on the other hand, there is dearth of experts and professionals in government agencies, feels Bajaj.

DSCI, set as an independent self-regulatory organization by NASSCOM, focuses on developing standards for data security and privacy in Indian industries. It also provides training to law enforcement agencies to deal with cyber crime. It is looking forward to collaborate with universities in the country to promote awareness on cyber security.