Are Counterfeit Aadhaar and PAN Cards Putting Your Personal Security at Risk?

In the information age, identity theft or online scams are becoming more common. The matter gets even more severe when the duping is done with the premiere identification system of the country which the government deems secure to store vital information of the citizens including demographic details as well as biometric information.

A recent report by the Times of India, Fake Aadhaar and PAN cards are being obtained through Dark Web by perpetrators within minutes. The fake documents can be created through some dark web websites or through Android Package Kits (APK) with a few clicks. All this requires only some basic knowledge of the dark web. The soft copy of the ID card can be printed and used practically for any purpose. 

A cybercrime expert while talking to TOI revealed that one such website has over 10 lakh downloads of these identification cards, with the majority of them being done from Gujarat. The official further added, “The sheer scale at which bogus ID cards are being printed and used is mind-boggling”.

Fake ID in Minutes

A TOI reporter for the story got a fake Aadhaar card made, with his own photograph, the name of another person and the address of a famous Bollywood actor. They describe that, one has to pay a small fee up-front to print the fake ID. It took him only about five minutes to get a fake Aadhaar. The fake ID looks almost identical to the real one. The authorities found out about this website while interrogating a fraudster in a loan scam case.

These apps aren’t available on Play Store and even these websites can’t be accessed with a normal browser, hence, the dark web and APKs are used to execute these frauds. The cybersecurity expert also revealed that such apps have readymade templates of Aadhaar cards, PAN and Driving Licenses. The fraudster just has to enter their details in the templet and the fake ID is generated instantly. This is a major security concern as these fake IDs can be used for booking hotel rooms or buying SIM cards.

Fake IDs on the Rise

According to a report published in The Hindu, Back in November 2022, fraudsters in Vishakhapatnam made an Aadhaar using most of their original details, except the photograph. The card also matched with the database of UIDAI. This was done to record a land registration deal. However, the victim received an alert on her phone before the damage could be done. Furthermore, in July, last year, police arrested two individuals for running a racket of fake IDs in Faridabad. They created fake Aadhaar cards for 38 Nigerian Nationals. The Union Ministry of Information Technology handed over a report in this regard to the local police, urging them to crack down on the racket of Fake IDs. The Aadhaar cards were allegedly made using the fake stamp of the local MLA.

Other than this, in April, this year,  Himachal Police nabbed a person from Bengal in relation to making fake ID cards in Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and many more states. These cards were made by fake operators. The perpetrator that the Himachal police caught had 12 laptops with him. The accused was creating fake Aadhaar cards by making a fake operator ID. The police stated that a total of four people have been arrested so far in this case. The police claim that there may be more arrests in the coming days.

Why so Many Frauds?

While the majority of the incidents included a single or few people committing minor frauds, one-third of the cases involved rackets where false or counterfeit Aadhaar cards were mass-produced. The methods used in these cases varied, but the two most prevalent were Aadhaar numbers being granted based on bogus or forged papers, and information such as names and photos being fabricated using crude editing methods and printers. There have also been reports of biometric and/or demographic records (fingerprints, pictures, names, and addresses) being changed during the enrolment process. In a few cases, sophisticated methods were employed to produce fraudulent Aadhaar numbers by exploiting gaps in the enrolling process.

The normal reaction of the government has been to dismiss such claims by arguing that no genuine Aadhaar numbers were produced in these circumstances and that they were just forgeries. Based on the many types of deception used, this rationale is only partially valid. In numerous instances, either genuine Aadhaar numbers were obtained, for example, by using fake/forged papers, or Aadhaar details in the database were manipulated, for example, by utilising the online detail updating tool.

Furthermore, regardless of the method used, Aadhaar appears to have become extremely easy to fake or forge in paper form and use as ID for a variety of services, including obtaining SIM cards, opening bank accounts, acquiring loans, booking hotel accommodations, getting married in court, proving identity for air and train travel, and so on. The fact that the majority of these cases did not involve UIDAI providing a genuine Aadhaar number does not negate the reality that fraudulent or counterfeit Aadhaar data were used to commit fraud. 

Aadhaar Security Concerns

Some features of Aadhaar have caused concern as its scope and use have grown. Frequent instances of data leaks have cast doubt on the data security infrastructure's dependability. Recently, a security researcher discovered an online dashboard of the Andhra Pradesh government that was openly exposing Aadhaar numbers connected to enormous quantities of personal information acquired by Aadhaar, including residence and bank data. Furthermore, the dashboard's ability to accurately geo-locate families based on caste and religion underscores the serious ramifications of Aadhaar for privacy.

Crucially, fresh research has raised severe doubts regarding Aadhaar's trustworthiness, especially for biometric authentication - the element that distinguishes Aadhaar from other identification proofs. The requirement for biometric verification in order to get welfare benefits has resulted in increased transaction costs and major exclusion issues. According to a recent statement to the Supreme Court by the UIDAI, authentication failure rates for fingerprints can reach 6% and 8.5% for iris. According to a similar Supreme Court presentation by the CEO of UIDAI, recent failures for 'government services' are much higher at about 12%. Despite proof of such high failure rates, biometric verification is mandated for social programmes in several states.