Even as the Central Government denied asking any manufacturer or service provider to auto-upload the defunct UIDAI toll free number in the contact list of Android phones, city residents are outraged at the gross invasion of privacy, especially by an unknown party, fearing that their digital safety has been compromised.
Illustration: Saai
Chennai:
Kiruba Shankar, city’s social media expert, said the fact that it is not the government but another unidentified agency behind this incident increases the vulnerability of the citizens.
“It is the government’s task to protect the digital privacy of its citizens. This is a wake-up call, an opportunity for the government to make a strong statement that no private or government agency has the authority to forcefully store numbers and introduce a law. If the agency can store a contact number, it isn’t too difficult to imagine them introducing other malware to steal confidential data. I’m certain this is against the law,” said the expert.