A Theatre Road resident received a text message last week that said a new SIM card had been issued against his Aadhaar number.
The name of the person to whom the SIM card was issued was also mentioned in the text message.
The Theatre Road resident did not know that man. Nor did he apply for a SIM card.
He reported the matter to police and got the new SIM card blocked before it could be misused.
The police said this was just one of the many instances they have come across of Aadhaar numbers being misused by fraudsters without the knowledge of the owners.
“There are instances of biometrics of the Aadhaar card-holders being cloned through the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System. People are also vulnerable even while sharing photocopies of their Aadhaar cards as their identity documents,” said an officer of the detective department.
The police said the Theatre Road resident did not suffer any loss because the SIM card that had been fraudulently issued was blocked before fraudsters could misuse it.
“We have asked the complainant to alert us immediately if he suffers any financial loss,” said an officer at the Kolkata police headquarters in Lalbazar.
Another senior officer in Lalbazar said people often feel it is “safe” to self-attest photocopies of identity documents and write the purpose for which they are being shared.
“But the fact remains that even after self-attesting a document, it can be misused for fraudulent activities,” said the officer.
He added that people should lock their Aadhaar cards, just like they can keep their biometrics locked, to prevent misuse.
“If we lock our Aadhaar card, we have to unlock it every time we want to use it as an identity document. The security layer will alert you if an unauthorised person tries to use your Aadhaar details. If the usage is not approved by you, the transaction will automatically be declined,” said an officer in the cybercrime cell of Kolkata police.
To ensure the safety of one’s Aadhaar card, police officers said, one should download an application called mAadhaar from the Playstore (for Android phones) or Appstore (for iPhones).
“One should download the application and opt for Aadhaar locking. Once the Aadhaar is locked, no one will be able to use the number without the knowledge or consent of the owner,” said the officer.
