🕵️ Collecting biometric data

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A city-based firm has been collecting biometric data posing risks to privacy and identity theft.

What’s it about? The company Impact Technologies has been collecting biometric data of thousands of residents to authenticate the beneficiaries of a welfare scheme by the Corporation. However, reports indicate the Corporation had no idea about it since 2015, when the contract was signed. They were hired in 2011 for an urban development project and later for others.

  • The data includes fingerprints and iris scans of people from socio-economically backward communities. Many are potential beneficiaries of the Resettlement and Rehabilitation scheme of the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB).
  • There was no tender process when the contract was signed. It’s a potential violation of the Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tenders Act 1998 and The Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tenders Rules 2000.

Concerns: Data privacy activist Srikanth L said this could lead to identity theft. People can assume the identity of someone and launder money and open bank accounts. Anushka Jain from the Internet Freedom Foundation said there’s no proper legal framework from the government on the private sector for data collection.

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