The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in India, under the UIDAI, offers e-KYC authentication services for digital identity verification. This analysis delves into the entities authorized to use e-KYC services, both from the government and private sectors. Government organizations, such as regional rural banks and central/state government bodies, extensively utilize e-KYC services. Private entities, including cooperative banks, foreign banks, and small finance banks, are also involved under specific Acts.
The UIDAI conducts rigorous security audits before granting access to e-KYC services. Entities undergo thorough assessments by certified auditors to ensure compliance with information security standards. This process helps mitigate risks and assures data protection. Furthermore, the Aadhaar Act mandates that requesting entities maintain stringent security measures and face penalties for non-compliance.
The Indian government’s commitment to secure e-KYC authentication services is evident through its stringent authorization process and security audits. With a vast network of authorized government and private entities, this system enables seamless and secure identity verification while safeguarding Aadhaar data. The comprehensive approach underscores the importance of data privacy and protection in the digital age.
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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3432
TO BE ANSWERED ON 09.08.2023
USE OF E-KYC AUTHENTICATION SERVICES
3432. SHRI SYED IMTIAZ JALEEL:
Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:
(a) the details of Government organisations which are authorised to use e-KYC authentication services of UIDAI under various Acts and rules;
(b) the list of private firms requesting for access to e-KYC authentication services of UIDAI under various Acts and rules;
(c) whether the UIDAI conducted security audits of these entities before the access to e-KYC was provided and if so, the details thereof; and
(d) whether the Government has taken precautions for the safety of Aadhaar data before it is shared with private firms?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(SHRI RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR)
(a) The Unique Identification Authority of India provides digital identity (Aadhaar) and digital ID authentication services to all the residents of India. Aadhaar authentication (including e-KYC authentication) by entities is provided for in sections 4 and 7 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 (“Aadhaar Act”).
e-KYC User Agencies (KUAs) appointed by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) are allowed to perform eKYC authentication. A KUA may appoint sub-KUAs under them after obtaining specific permission from UIDAI for sharing of eKYC data with its sub-KUAs.
At present, 92 government entities are KUAs and 27 government entities are operating as sub-KUAs. List of the same is at Annexure I.
(b) Private entities are allowed to use Aadhaar authentication under the provisions of other Acts of Parliament, such as the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885. At present, 90 private entities are operating as KUAs and 24 private entities are operating as sub-KUAs. List of the same is at Annexure II.
(c) and (d): KUAs are initially on-boarded in pre-production environment. They are required to get their systems, applications and operations audited by an Information Security Auditor empanelled by the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), and the Information Security Audit report is examined by UIDAI. KUAs are moved into production environment (i.e., made live) only after the Information Security Audit report is found to be as per satisfaction of UIDAI.
Further, the Aadhaar Act provides that requesting entities shall ensure the security of identity information as well as restriction on sharing information and take all necessary measures to ensure that information in their possession or control is secured and protected against access not permitted under the Act or regulations made thereunder. It also provides for penalties for noncompliance with the provisions of the Act.
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Annexure-I
Government Organizations using e-KYC services of Aadhaar
| Regional Rural Banks | |
| S. No. | Organization Name |
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh Grameen Vikas Bank |
| 2 | Andhra Pragathi Grameena Bank |
| 3 | Assam Gramin Bank |
| 4 | Bangiya Gramin Vikash Bank |
| 5 | Baroda Gujarat Gramin Bank |
| 6 | Baroda Rajasthan Kshetriya Gramin Bank |
| 7 | Baroda Uttar Pradesh Gramin Bank |
| 8 | Chaitanya Godavari Grameena Bank |
| 9 | Chattisgarh Rajya Gramin Bank |
| 10 | Aryavart Bank |
| 11 | Himachal Pradesh Gramin Bank |
| 12 | Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank |
| 13 | Kerala Gramin Bank |
| 14 | Dakshina Bihar Gramin Bank |
| 15 | Madhyanchal Gramin Bank |
| 16 | Maharashtra Gramin Bank |
| 17 | Manipur Rural Bank |
| 18 | Meghalaya Rural Bank |
| 19 | Madhya Pradesh Gramin Bank |
| 20 | Odisha Gramya Bank |
| 21 | Tamil Nadu Grama Bank |
| 22 | Paschim Banga Gramin Bank |
| 23 | Karnataka Gramin Bank |
| 24 | Punjab Gramin Bank |
| 25 | Rajasthan Marudhara Gramin Bank |
| 26 | Saptagiri Grameena Bank |
| 27 | Sarva Haryana Gramin Bank |
| 28 | Prathama UP Gramin Bank |
| 29 | Saurashtra Gramin Bank |
| 30 | Telangana Grameena Bank |
| 31 | Tripura Gramin Bank |
| 32 | Utkal Grameena Bank |
| 33 | Uttar Bihar Gramin Bank |
| 34 | Uttarakhand Gramin Bank |
| 35 | Uttarbanga Kshetriya Gramin Bank |
| 36 | Jharkhand Rajya Gramin Bank |
| 37 | Vidharbha Konkan Gramin Bank |
| 38 | J & K Grameen Bank |
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| Central and State Government Sub-KUAs | |
| S.N. | Sub-AUA/KUA Name |
| 1 | Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) |
| 2 | Registration Department, Jammu & Kashmir |
| 3 | Employees’ State Insurance Corporation |
| 4 | Office of the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS), Ministry of Cooperation |
| 5 | Punjab Building & Other Construction Worker Welfare Board (BOCWWB) |
| 6 | Dr. YSR Aarogyasri Health Care Trust |
| 7 | Urban Administration and Development Department |
| 8 | School Education Department, M.P |
| 9 | Professional Examination Board (PEB) |
| 10 | Directorate of Institutional Finance, GoMP |
| 11 | Directorate of Agriculture Engineering |
| 12 | MP State Rural Livelihoods Mission (MPSRLM) |
| 13 | Navodaya Vidyalya Samiti (NVS) |
| 14 | Indian Army, Ministry of Defence |
| 15 | Social Welfare Department, Uttar Pradesh |
| 16 | Backward Class Welfare Department, U.P |
| 17 | Uttar Pradesh Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board |
| 18 | Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission, Dept. of U.P Govt. |
| 19 | Agriculture Department, Uttar Pradesh |
| 20 | Department of Ayush, U.P |
| 21 | Commissioner ESD, Govt. of Telangana |
| 22 | Stree Nidhi Credit Cooperative Federation Limited |
| 23 | Telangana Building & Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (TBOCWWB) |
| 24 | Aarogyasri Health Care Trust |
| 25 | MSME |
| 26 | National Scholarship Portal |
| 27 | Stamp and Registration Dept, Govt. of UP |
Annexure-II
List of Private Entities under Section 4(4)(b)(i) of Aadhaar Act, 2016
(i) Section 11A of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002
(ii) The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885
| Co-Operative Banks | |
| S. No. | Organization Name |
| 1 | Abhyudaya Co-operative Bank Ltd |
| 2 | Gopinath Patil Parsik Janata Sahakari Bank Ltd. |
| 3 | Unity Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 4 | The Cosmos Co-Op Bank Ltd. |
| 5 | The Mehsana Urban Co-Operative Bank Ltd. |
| 6 | The Odisha State Cooperative Bank Ltd |
| 7 | The Rajasthan State Co-operative Bank Limited |
| 8 | The Saraswat Co-operative Bank Ltd. |
| 9 | SVC Co-operative Bank Limited |
| 10 | Kerala State Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 11 | The Gayatri Co-operative Urban Bank Ltd. |
| 12 | The Surat People’s Co-op. Bank Ltd. |
| 13 | The Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank Limited |
| 14 | Uttar Pradesh Co-operative Bank Ltd. |
| 15 | Tripura State Co-operative Bank Ltd. |
| 16 | The Tamil Nadu State Apex Co-operative Bank Ltd. |
| Foreign Banks Licensed by RBI to operate in India | |
| S. No. | Organization Name |
| 1 | DBS Bank India Limited |
| 2 | Deutsche Bank |
| 3 | Standard Chartered Bank |
| 4 | The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, India (HSBC) |
| 5 | Citi Bank |
Small Finance Bank
| S. No. | Organization Name |
| 1 | Shivalik Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 2 | ESAF Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 3 | Equitas Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 4 | Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 5 | Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 6 | Au Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 7 | Suryoday Small Finance Bank Ltd. |
| 8 | Fincare Small Finance Bank Limited |
| 9 | Jana Small Finance Bank Limited |
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| Banks under Section 11 A of PMLA Act, 2002 | |
| S.N. | Sub-KUA Name |
| 1 | Coimbatore District Central Co-operative Bank |
| 2 | Nilgiris District Central Co-operative Bank |
| 3 | Vellore District Central Co-operative Bank |
| 4 | Angul United Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 5 | Aska Cooperative Central Bank Ltd. |
| 6 | Balangir Disctrict Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 7 | Balasore-Bhadrak Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 8 | Banki Central cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 9 | Berhampore Cooperative Central Bank Ltd. |
| 10 | Bhawanipatna Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 11 | Cuttack Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 12 | Keonjhar Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 13 | Khordha Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 14 | Koraput Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 15 | Mayurbhanj Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 16 | Nayagarh District Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 17 | Sambalpur District Cooperative Central Bank Ltd. |
| 18 | Sundargarh District Central Cooperative Bank Limited |
| 19 | United Puri Nimapara Central Cooperative Bank Ltd. |
| 20 | Boudh Cooperative Central Bank Ltd. |
–
| RBI Regulated Entities | |
| S.N. | Sub-KUA Name |
| 1 | Ambit Finvest Private Limited |
| 2 | Satya Microcapital Limited |
| 3 | Adi Chitragupta Finance Limited |
| 4 | Upmove Capital Private Limited |
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