Supreme Court: Aadhaar Not Required For Banks & Phone Numbers, Companies Can't Store User Data

The Supreme Court today tackled one of the biggest cases we¡¯ve seen in recent years, that of whether the Aadhaar Card system is unconstitutional. Specifically, it¡¯s come to a decision regarding the data of every person that¡¯s signed up for the ID.

The Constitution bench, consisting of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AK Sikri, AM Khanwikar, DY Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan, have made their verdict clear, and it¡¯s unanimous.

Also Read: Supreme Court Upholds Constitutional Validity Of Aadhaar Card In A Landmark Verdict

No Aadhaar linking for phone numbers or bank accounts

The bench has officially struck down Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act. That means only the government can ask for your Aadhaar card in order to identify you for welfare schemes etc. So now, you don't need to verify your Aadhaar ID for a bank account or SIM card. "DoT notification to that effect unconstitutional," said Justice Sikri.

Private companies can't ask for Aadhaar verification

This section previously also allowed private companies to insist on Aadhaar, which is no more. That means parents don't need to get their child an Aadhaar card for school admissions either. "No person's right can be denied on the ground of lack of Aadhaar," Justice Sikri read out during the pronouncement.

Companies can't store your digital data

The previous rule that required companies to archive Aadhaar-based transaction logs has been struck down, and they can't save your metadata either. The idea is to preserve your Right to Privacy, even if you choose to use an Aadhar-based payment system authenticated by your thumbprint.

User privacy has been increased

The national security exception under Section 33 has also been struck down. In essence, it means the government can't even use the "matter of national security" excuse to demand information from your Aadhaar registration.

UIDAI's Aadhaar data security is adequate

Supreme Court pronounced that it's satisfied with the security measures taken to protect citizens' data. Your data's privacy may now be protected by the law from the government and companies, but it seems that no one in power is realistically considering the possibilities of breaches. This assessment is surprising, especially when you recall all the data breaches reported within Aadhaar's database, and the fact that we don¡¯t even have a data protection law, either.