Answer Book question
Aadhaar misuse mostly happens through biometrics and through paper copies. Both can be closed. Lock your biometrics on the myAadhaar portal or the mAadhaar app so no fingerprint or iris authentication can be done, and unlock for ten minutes when you need it. Use a Virtual ID or a masked Aadhaar (last four digits only) instead of the full number wherever a copy is demanded. Check your authentication history on the portal to see who has used your Aadhaar and when. Nobody legitimate needs your Aadhaar OTP over the phone.
Aadhaar misuse mostly happens through biometrics and through paper copies. Both can be closed. Lock your biometrics on the myAadhaar portal or the mAadhaar app so no fingerprint or iris authentication can be done, and unlock for ten minutes when you need it. Use a Virtual ID or a masked Aadhaar (last four digits only) instead of the full number wherever a copy is demanded. Check your authentication history on the portal to see who has used your Aadhaar and when. Nobody legitimate needs your Aadhaar OTP over the phone.
An elderly couple in Pandalam find ₹48,000 withdrawn through the Aadhaar-enabled payment system at a distant business correspondent. Their fingerprints, cloned from a property registration copy, were used. Had biometrics been locked, the transaction would have failed. The bank's liability rules (Cards 2) apply, but the lock would have prevented it.
UIDAI provides: Biometric Lock/Unlock (myAadhaar portal, mAadhaar app, or SMS), which blocks fingerprint, iris and face authentication until you unlock temporarily; Aadhaar Lock, which blocks use of the Aadhaar number itself for authentication, leaving only the Virtual ID usable; a 16-digit Virtual ID that can be generated any time and used in place of the number; masked Aadhaar downloads showing only the last four digits; an Authentication History showing every authentication in the last six months; and an option to set up alerts by email.
The Aadhaar (Sharing of Information) Regulations bar an entity from storing a copy of your Aadhaar without authority; hotels, cinemas and small offices often ask anyway, and a masked copy satisfies almost all of them. Aadhaar-enabled payment (AePS) withdrawals through business correspondents are the commonest biometric-fraud channel; banks now allow you to disable AePS on your account on request.
Aadhaar is not proof of citizenship or date of birth for all purposes, and should not be the only document handed over for a SIM or a hotel check-in.
Mobile number linked to Aadhaar (without it, none of the locks work); update at an Aadhaar centre if needed Biometric lock status; lock it today Authentication history for any unknown use Whether AePS is enabled on the bank account; ask the bank to disable it if unused Which offices hold full copies; going forward, give masked copies
Thinking the lock will stop you using Aadhaar. Unlocking takes a minute on the app and automatically re-locks. Also: parents sharing the OTP with 'the bank' caller.
Kerala's property registrations, Akshaya centre transactions and ration-card e-KYC all use biometrics, which is why cloning cases have appeared here. NRIs can hold Aadhaar and should lock biometrics while abroad; authentication attempts in India would then fail. For parents, a child abroad can set the lock during a visit and teach the unlock.
Lock biometrics: two minutes on mAadhaar. Unlock when the ration shop needs it: one minute, valid ten minutes. Masked Aadhaar PDF: download once, keep on the phone. Cost: nil.
If your Aadhaar is not linked to a mobile you control, the online tools are unavailable until you update at a centre. Locking does not reverse a fraud already done; report to the bank and 1930 within the three-day window.
Link or update the mobile number at an Aadhaar Seva Kendra if needed Lock biometrics; generate a Virtual ID; download masked Aadhaar Ask the bank to disable AePS on accounts that do not use it
Money was stolen from my account through a fraud. Will the bank refund it? Are there SIM cards or bank accounts in my name that I do not know about?
Fraud prevention
UIDAI myAadhaar portal and mAadhaar app help pages (Biometric Lock, Virtual ID, masked Aadhaar, authentication history) · Aadhaar (Authentication and Offline checking) Regulations, 2021 · NPCI AePS customer controls Last checked: 22 August 2026. Rates, limits and whether you may qualify change. Confirm with the official source before you act. Ask Kerala Rising: Use only general, non-identifying facts.
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This page is general orientation, not personal insurance, investment, medical, legal, lending, tax, employment, or professional advice. Rules, rates, deadlines, and decisions can change. Confirm the current position with the named official source and use a licensed or qualified professional where your situation requires one. Kerala Rising does not decide whether you may qualify, approve claims, or promise an outcome.