The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has turned off more than 25 million Aadhaar cards to stop identity theft, according to the Press Information Bureau (PIB). Most of these Aadhaar cards belonged to people who have died. This step helps prevent misuse of Aadhaar in services that need identity checks. Aadhaar is widely used for banking, investments, mobile connections, and government welfare schemes. Officials said the cleanup exercise will help keep databases current and reduce fraud risks. Families have been urged to report deaths promptly so Aadhaar numbers can be closed in time. The reporting facility is available online to speed processing and avoid long queues at centres nationwide, officials said.
Jitin Prasada, the Minister of State for Electronics and IT in the parliament, stated that ‘Aadhaar is the world’s largest biometric identity system, with nearly 134 crore active holders.’ He further added that ‘deactivating the Aadhaar number after a person’s death is essential to stop unauthorised use and identity theft’.
Also read: Alphabet dodges investor question on Google-Apple AI deal during earnings call
To make the process easier, UIDAI has introduced an online service called ‘Reporting of Death of a Family Member’ on the myAadhaar portal. Family members can do so by uploading the documents like the death certificate, the deceased person’s Aadhaar details and proof of their relationship. To keep the process secure, UIDAI has also added safety features such as biometric locking and face authentication.
Also read: OpenAI models to power Amazon’s Alexa and other AI products: Report
While the authorities have done the homework, there’s a high chance that they might have made a mistake. Here’s how you can check if your Aadhar card is still active using the UIDAI website:
1. Launch the web browser on your mobile or computer.
2. Go to the MyAadhaar Portal.
3. Look for Check Aadhaar Validity and select it.
4. Enter your Aadhaar number > complete the Captcha > hit Proceed.
Once done, you’ll be presented with the basic data related to the Aadhar card, which includes if the user exists or not, age band, gender, state and the last three numbers of their mobile number.
Also read: Anthropic mocks OpenAI’s idea of bringing ads to ChatGPT, Sam Altman responds
If you’ve earlier requested the Aadhaar deactivation process for a deceased person, then you can select Check deceased Aadhaar deactivation status > enter S followed by the 27-digit request number received earlier > enter captcha details > press Submit. Now you’ll be able to view the status.