New Delhi, January 25: Amid debates over privacy and safety concerns related to Aadhaar data, a woman was surprised to know that her Aadhaar details were linked to nine other mobile numbers, not owned by her.  The shocked female took to micro-blogging site Twitter to express her astonishment regarding the Aadhaar goof-up.

According to a series of tweets, Twitter user @PRIYARD got to know about the issue when she visited the Airtel gallery to link her number, the only one she has had since 2000, to her Aadhaar card. In what is believed to be a shock for life, the woman was stunned when the mobile network operator informed her that there were already nine other connections linked to her Aadhaar card. It must be noted that the government has set a deadline for mandatory Aadhaar linking to mobile numbers by February 6, 2018.

The woman using the handle @PRIYARD said on January 16, “The biggest shock of my life!!! Went to an Airtel store to get AADHAAR linked to the single mobile number I have been using since 2000. Was told there are 9 connections already linked to my AADHAAR!”  UIDAI, in its response tweeted,“At least the Aadhaar holder knows how many mobiles are linked to his/her Aadhaar number. In such cases one can complain against the mobile company to TRAI or TERM cell of DOT for fraudulently issuing SIM against their Aadhaar Number.” The Aadhaar issuing body further tweeted that earlier there was no way of knowing how many numbers were issued on the basis of the documents submitted by any subscriber.

“At least the Aadhaar holder knows how many mobiles are linked to his/her Aadhaar number. In such cases one can complain against the mobile company to TRAI or TERM cell of DOT for fraudulently issuing SIM against their Aadhaar Number,” UIDAI added.  However, Airtel replied to the woman’s tweet informing that there was only one connection linked to the user’s Aadhaar card and that the mobile operator provided her incorrect information due to a ‘software coding glitch’.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 25, 2018 03:22 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).