Websites exposing Aadhaar and PAN details blocked MeitY cracks down on insecure websites amid privacy concerns Mint

pThe Government of India has blocked several websites that were found to be exposing sensitive personal information including Aadhaar and PAN card details of Indian citizens This action was taken by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology MeitY The Unique Identification Authority of India UIDAI has also filed an official complaint with the police authorities accusing these websites of violating Section 294 of the Aadhaar Act 2016ppThis section explicitly prohibits the public display of Aadhaar numbers and related information The exposure of such sensitive data has raised serious concerns about the security of citizens personal details prompting immediate steps to prevent further leaksppThe Indian Computer Emergency Response Team CERTIn carried out an investigation and found several security vulnerabilities within these websites As a result the website owners were provided with detailed instructions on how to fix these security issues and strengthen their information and communication technology ICT infrastructuresppCERTIn also issued comprehensive guidelines for the design development implementation and operation of secure IT applications which all organizations handling sensitive data are expected to followppIn addition to these efforts CERTIn has also issued directives under the Information Technology IT Act 2000 These directions outline security practices procedures for preventing cyber incidents and reporting requirements for organizations that experience data breachesppMeitY has also emphasized the importance of the Information Technology Reasonable Security Practices and Procedures and Sensitive Personal Data or Information Rules 2011 These rules strictly mandate that sensitive personal data must not be disclosed publicly or shared without authorization Individuals who believe their data has been compromised can file complaints with Adjudicating Officers who are IT Secretaries appointed by the states These officers have the authority to impose penalties and award compensation to affected parties under Section 46 of the IT ActppMeanwhile the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 has been introduced to further strengthen the protection of personal data in India The rules under this new law are currently in the final stages of drafting and are expected to be enforced soon To ensure widespread understanding of the new regulations the government has launched an awareness campaign aimed at informing citizens businesses and government entities about their responsibilities when handling personal datappMilestone Alert
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