Editor's Pick | Privacy concerns over Digi Yatra initiative

Security personnel and private staff at the entry gate of airports may be collecting facial biometrics without an individual’s knowledge or consent. As year-end travel peaked at some of the busiest airports in the country last month, air travellers took to social media to express their shock and anger at the flagrant infringement of their privacy at airports, largely through the aggressive promotion of the Digi Yatra initiative, launched by the Union government. The app, which allows for digital processing of passengers, promoting paperless and seamless movement through airports, was rolled out as a voluntary programme from December 2022. Recounting his experience, Tavish Pattanayak, an aerospace engineering scholar in the U.S. was scheduled to fly with IndiGo out of Delhi said he skipped the queue dedicated for Digi Yatra users, who have downloaded and registered on the app, allowing them to enter the passenger building through electronic gates equipped with cameras that scan their boarding passes and faces. However, Mr. Pattanayak soon realised that passengers in his line were also being requested to look into a camera, following which the CISF personnel would click a button on the screen to give consent on their behalf for a one-time sign up for Digi Yatra. “The security person checked my identity document and ticket and asked me to look at a screen to capture my photo. At the bottom of the screen, in tiny fonts, you are asked whether you want to enrol for Digi Yatra. It is impossible to read the text and the camera interface takes up the entire screen. But I had read the text when there was another family ahead of me, so I quickly proceeded to click no,” Mr. Pattanayak told The Hindu. However, many passengers in a rush to catch their flight were not aware of what was going on and did not ask any questions, he said. In October 2023, the U.S.-based cybersecurity firm Resecurity reported that personal information of over 81.5 crore Indians sourced from the Indian Council of Medical Research’s database, including Aadhaar and passport details, was being sold on the dark web. A spokesperson for the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) claimed that “private airport staff are collecting facial biometrics at various kiosks outside the passenger building, but CISF personnel are not involved in this exercise”. A Delhi airport official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, contradicted this statement, saying, “Our staff are assisting CISF personnel in carrying out validation, and we have now briefed our teams at entry gates to ensure passengers are educated and consent sought from them.” Suresh Khadakbhavi, CEO of the Digi Yatra Foundation, said that enrollments to the app have been ramped up since the December peak travel season by deploying scanners with CISF personnel as well as separate kiosks manned by airport staff for a one-time sign up of passengers on the day of travel. This was meant to “expose passengers to the benefit of a smoother way to pass through various checkpoints,” he said. But since most passengers are not informed that they are being registered, they may not know that they can use the paperless facility. The Digi Yatra Foundation is a not-for-profit company whose shareholders comprise the Airports Authority of India and the five private airports at Delhi, Bengaluru, Cochin, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. While the Digi Yatra policy was unveiled by the government in 2018, it was implemented only after the COVID-19 pandemic had eased. In December 2022, it was rolled out at three airports, including Delhi. Since then, it has been implemented at 11 airports, and will be expanded to 14 more in the months to come. The funding for Digi Yatra comes from the airports, and not the government. The Digi Yatra Foundation maintains that biometric data or any other personally identifiable information is not stored in any database permanently, but in a secure wallet inside the app on the user’s mobile device. It maintains that while the Biometric Boarding System of the local airport has access to this data on the day of travel, it is automatically purged within 24 hours. However, concerns remain, as the policy provides exemptions for airports to share data with government agencies, and India is yet to notify its Digital Personal Data Protection Bill 2023,which was passed in Parliament last August. Editorials Drug war: On use of antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance Unkept promise: On India’s quest for a Test series win in South Africa The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Which party was founded by Y.S Sharmila, the brother of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy? Jana Sena Party YSR Congress Party YSR Telangana Party Praja Seva Party To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 06 January 2024 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Privacy concerns over Digi Yatra initiative Security personnel and private staff at the entry gate of airports may be collecting [facial biometrics without an individual’s knowledge or consent]( As year-end travel peaked at some of the busiest airports in the country last month, air travellers took to social media to express their shock and anger at the flagrant infringement of their privacy at airports, largely through the aggressive promotion of the [Digi Yatra initiative]( launched by the Union government. The app, which allows for digital processing of passengers, promoting paperless and seamless movement through airports, was rolled out [as a voluntary programme from December 2022]( Recounting his experience, Tavish Pattanayak, an aerospace engineering scholar in the U.S. was scheduled to fly with IndiGo out of Delhi said he skipped the queue dedicated for Digi Yatra users, who have downloaded and registered on the app, allowing them to enter the passenger building through electronic gates equipped with cameras that scan their boarding passes and faces. However, Mr. Pattanayak soon realised that passengers in his line were also being requested to look into a camera, following which the CISF personnel would click a button on the screen to give consent on their behalf for a one-time sign up for Digi Yatra. “The security person checked my identity document and ticket and asked me to look at a screen to capture my photo. At the bottom of the screen, in tiny fonts, you are asked whether you want to enrol for Digi Yatra. It is impossible to read the text and the camera interface takes up the entire screen. But I had read the text when there was another family ahead of me, so I quickly proceeded to click no,” Mr. Pattanayak told The Hindu. However, many passengers in a rush to catch their flight were not aware of what was going on and did not ask any questions, he said. In October 2023, the U.S.-based cybersecurity firm Resecurity reported that personal information of over 81.5 crore Indians sourced from the Indian Council of Medical Research’s database, including Aadhaar and passport details, was being sold on the dark web. A spokesperson for the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) claimed that “private airport staff are collecting facial biometrics at various kiosks outside the passenger building, but CISF personnel are not involved in this exercise”. A Delhi airport official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, contradicted this statement, saying, “Our staff are assisting CISF personnel in carrying out validation, and we have now briefed our teams at entry gates to ensure passengers are educated and consent sought from them.” Suresh Khadakbhavi, CEO of the Digi Yatra Foundation, said that enrollments to the app have been ramped up since the December peak travel season by deploying scanners with CISF personnel as well as separate kiosks manned by airport staff for a one-time sign up of passengers on the day of travel. This was meant to “expose passengers to the benefit of a smoother way to pass through various checkpoints,” he said. But since most passengers are not informed that they are being registered, they may not know that they can use the paperless facility. The Digi Yatra Foundation is a not-for-profit company whose shareholders comprise the Airports Authority of India and the five private airports at Delhi, Bengaluru, Cochin, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. While the Digi Yatra policy was unveiled by the government in 2018, it was implemented only after the COVID-19 pandemic had eased. In December 2022, it was rolled out at three airports, including Delhi. Since then, it has been implemented at 11 airports, and will be expanded to 14 more in the months to come. The funding for Digi Yatra comes from the airports, and not the government. The Digi Yatra Foundation maintains that biometric data or any other personally identifiable information is not stored in any database permanently, but in a secure wallet inside the app on the user’s mobile device. It maintains that while the Biometric Boarding System of the local airport has access to this data on the day of travel, it is automatically purged within 24 hours. However, concerns remain, as the policy provides exemptions for airports to share data with government agencies, and India is yet to notify its [Digital Personal Data Protection Bill 2023]( was passed in Parliament last August. Editorials [Arrow][Drug war: On use of antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance]( [Arrow][Unkept promise: On India’s quest for a Test series win in South Africa]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Which party was founded by Y.S Sharmila, the brother of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy? - Jana Sena Party - YSR Congress Party - YSR Telangana Party - Praja Seva Party To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. 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