An Aadhaar card is essential to all Indian citizens. It's no less than an identification document. From government dealings to personal finance, you need this card for everything. Aadhaar card holders get a unique 12-digit Aadhaar number which is issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). It holds all the sensitive information of an individual and therefore is more vulnerable to activities like fraud.
Therefore, people are a bit concerned if others knowing their unique identification number can cause them any trouble. As many people have linked their bank account with Aadhar they are worried if their bank account gets hacked by someone who comes to know about their Aadhaar number.
UIDAI has answered this query and has informed people that this is not true and there is no need to worry.
Just as by merely knowing your ATM card number, no one can withdraw money from the ATM machine and by knowing your Aadhaar number alone, no one can hack into your bank account and withdraw money.
Your bank account is safe if you don't part with your PIN/OTP given by banks, UIDAI said.
Aadhaar number alone cannot be used for banking or any other service, it further informed.
However, to prevent financial fraud from happening, the UIDAI is giving users a special feature to lock and unlock one's Aadhaar card number online. Thie new "lock and unlock your Aadhar number" feature is sure to not let anyone misuse your Aadhaar card number as a Virtual ID authentication will be required.
Here is a step-by-step process on how you can lock your Aadhar card:
Step 1: Send an SMS to 1947 from your registered mobile number, after which you will receive an OTP. The SMS should be GETOTP followed by the last four digits of your Aadhaar card number.
Step 2: Once you receive the OTP, send another SMS in the format LOCKUID followed by the last four digits of your Aadhaar card number and the six-digit OTP.
Step 3: Once the first two steps are completed, the UIDAI will lock your Aadhaar card number after which you will also get a confirmation message for the same.
Here is a step-by-step process on how you can unlock your Aadhar card:
Step 1: Send an SMS to 1947 from your registered mobile number. The SMS format will be GETOTP followed by the last four digits of your Aadhaar card number.
Step 2: Once you receive the OTP, send another SMS in the format UNLOCKUID followed by the last four digits of the Aadhaar card number and the six-digit OTP to 1947.
Once this process is completed, the UIDAI will unlock your Aadhaar card and you will get a confirmation reply in your message inbox.
