(Image source from: Deccan Herald)

The UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) on Tuesday asked people to refrain sharing their 12-digit Aadhaar number on the internet and social media, and pose such challenges to others.

The decision comes a few days after the outgoing Chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, R.S. Sharma, made his Aadhaar number public, throwing an open challenge to users to "do any harm to me." Sharma had said the motive was to ridicule the theory that Aadhaar compromises the privacy of a person.

Pursuing suit, a lot of people started posting their Aadhaar numbers online.

UIDAI Said that the Aadhaar number is personally sensitive information like bank account number, passport number and PAN (Permanent Account Number), which should be shared only on a need basis for a legitimate use for establishing identity and for legitimate transactions.

By Sowmya Sangam