TRAI recommend Aadhaar-linked digital scrutiny for new mobile connections

TRAI had put a recommendation on Aadhaar-linked digital scrutiny as one of the valid documents for getting a new mobile connection for new mobile connections to the Department of Telecom (DoT).

If this is allowed by DOT, Reliance Jio will be the biggest Mobile network to get advantage of this. Reliance Jio had already announced they are going paperless for user verification.

“We have sent the recommendations in addition to others that electronic KYC of Aadhaar should be one of the valid documents for granting the mobile connection,” TRAI Chairman R S Sharma told PTI at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

In order to simplify the electronic verification process through Aadhaar, Sebi has allowed mutual fund houses and market intermediaries to verify the credentials of their clients with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

A lot of paperwork will be reduced as retailers selling SIM cards will be able to get customer profile and biometric authentication details online with the UIDAI server. UIDAI has already issued 97.93 crore Aadhaar numbers across the country.

“Our concern is that even from security perspective, using the documents of one person, people can get many SIMs without his knowledge. This is problematic,” he said.