Authentication Ecosystem

The Aadhaar Authentication Ecosystem, governed by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) involves the process of “authentication” using the Aadhaar number by the Aadhaar holder along with either biometrics (Face/Fingerprint/Iris); demographics (Name, Gender, Date of Birth, Address); or OTP through seeded mobile number with Aadhaar and submitting to UIDAI’s Central Identities Data Repository (CIDR) to verify the identity. The authentication process is performed by requesting entities as authorised by the legal provisions of the Aadhaar Act and their onboarding in the ecosystem. The key stakeholders of the ecosystem include Authentication User Agencies (AUAs)/eKYC User Agencies (KUAs) and Sub Authentication User Agencies (Sub-AUAs)/ Sub-eKYC User Agencies (KUAs) onboarded under them. Submission of input Aadhaar number along with Biometric/Demographic/OTP information to UIDAI CIDR is carried out through secured leased line connectivity by Authentication Service Agencies (ASAs). The CIDR returns a digitally signed Yes/No response or where applicable, e-KYC data to the requesting entity. The input data for authentication to UIDAI CIDR and storage of the data is done in an encrypted format by requesting entity to ensures end-to-end security and privacy-preserving authentication transactions.