While 20 crore people have locked their biometrics across the country since the facility was launched last year, around 1.50 crore are from Telugu states.

Hyderabad: More and more people are opting for locking Aadhaar biometric information to prevent any possible misuse of their Aadhaar data by others.

With Aadhaar linkage being made mandatory as of now for important services such as banking, property registrations, educational certificates, government benefits, mobile phones etc, people are taking the opportunity provided by UIDAI to lock their biometrics such as their iris scans, fingerprints and facial photographs.

Once the biometric is locked, no one can use it for authentication without your consent. It can be easily unlocked by you in case of need.

While 20 crore people have locked their biometrics across the country since the facility was launched last year, around 1.50 crore are from Telugu states.

While enrolling for Aadhaar, our biometrics are stored with UIDAI. Our KYC details like name, date of birth and address are also stored with the authority. However, there are issues of Aadhaar data leaking, or misuse or copying of fingerprints.

Locking biometrics is a simple process. There is no cost involved and no need to approach anyone. It can be done online only, by the individual, by logging on to the UIDAI website. Go to UIDAI’s homepage and click on the ‘lock/unlock biometrics’ link. This will take you to the page https://resident.uidai.gov.in/biometric-lock.

Aadhaar OTP can lock biometrics

Here you have to enter your Aadhaar number along with your security code. This code is generated using a OTP, which is sent to your registered mobile number.

Use this OTP to log-in and enter another security key to lock the biometrics. After you lock your biometrics, you will not be able to complete any biometric-based authentication. There is no need to remember any complex passwords to use this facility. All that is needed is your Aadhaar number and access to your registered mobile number.

UIDAI deputy director general M.V.S. Rami Reddy said, “We have done extensive campaigning through the media to create awareness among people on the biometric locking initiative. With this, more and more people are using the facility to secure their Aadhaar data on their own.