UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — New Aadhaar App dedicated to the nation
Q1. With reference to the institutional and legal timeline associated with the New Aadhaar App and its developer, consider the following statements:
1. UIDAI was accorded statutory status under the Aadhaar Act enacted in 2016.
2. UIDAI was first constituted as an attached office of the Planning Commission in 2010.
3. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act invoked by the app for data minimisation was enacted in 2023.
4. The Aadhaar Act was amended by the Aadhaar and Other Laws (Amendment) Act in 2018.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- UIDAI was accorded statutory status under the Aadhaar Act enacted in 2016.
- UIDAI was first constituted as an attached office of the Planning Commission in 2010.
- The Digital Personal Data Protection Act invoked by the app for data minimisation was enacted in 2023.
- The Aadhaar Act was amended by the Aadhaar and Other Laws (Amendment) Act in 2018.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 4
- D. 3 only
Q2. Comparing the New Aadhaar App with its predecessor interfaces, consider the following statements:
1. Both the earlier mAadhaar app and the New Aadhaar App were developed by UIDAI.
2. The New Aadhaar App introduces selective credential sharing through customised QR codes, under which verifiers do not store the Aadhaar number.
3. The New Aadhaar App was launched to replace the MyAadhaar web portal.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Both the earlier mAadhaar app and the New Aadhaar App were developed by UIDAI.
- The New Aadhaar App introduces selective credential sharing through customised QR codes, under which verifiers do not store the Aadhaar number.
- The New Aadhaar App was launched to replace the MyAadhaar web portal.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q3. Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 — the data-protection backbone of the New Aadhaar App — a request for consent must be made available to the Data Principal in English or in any of the languages specified in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. How many languages are currently listed in that Schedule?
Q4. Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, the body empowered to adjudicate on instances of non-compliance — the Data Protection Board of India — is to be established by which one of the following?
- A. The Reserve Bank of India
- B. The Central Government
- C. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
- D. The Unique Identification Authority of India
Q5. Which one of the following is projected as the flagship privacy principle of the New Aadhaar App, enabling data minimisation by letting a resident disclose only the specific identity fields a verifier needs?
- A. Selective credential sharing through customised QR codes
- B. Ordering of a PVC Aadhaar card for a nominal fee
- C. Generation of a Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP)
- D. Generation of a Virtual ID (VID)
Q6. Consider the following features as attributed to the New Aadhaar App:
1. Selective credential sharing through customised QR codes.
2. Management of up to five Aadhaar profiles on a single device.
3. Face verification for proof of presence.
4. Generation of a Virtual ID (VID) as its flagship, first-of-its-kind feature.
Which of the above is/are NOT correctly attributed?
- Selective credential sharing through customised QR codes.
- Management of up to five Aadhaar profiles on a single device.
- Face verification for proof of presence.
- Generation of a Virtual ID (VID) as its flagship, first-of-its-kind feature.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q7. Consider the following statements about the mAadhaar app and the New Aadhaar App:
1. mAadhaar allowed downloading Aadhaar and generating a Virtual ID (VID).
2. A Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) security feature was added to mAadhaar in 2017.
3. The New Aadhaar App is designed to succeed and phase out the mAadhaar app.
4. mAadhaar's core design allowed sharing of only selected identity fields via digitally signed verifiable credentials without verifiers storing the Aadhaar number.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- mAadhaar allowed downloading Aadhaar and generating a Virtual ID (VID).
- A Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) security feature was added to mAadhaar in 2017.
- The New Aadhaar App is designed to succeed and phase out the mAadhaar app.
- mAadhaar's core design allowed sharing of only selected identity fields via digitally signed verifiable credentials without verifiers storing the Aadhaar number.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 3 only
- D. 4 only
Q8. Which one of the following was the first official mobile application launched by UIDAI to give Aadhaar number holders a dedicated mobile interface, and which the New Aadhaar App is now intended to succeed?
- A. mAadhaar
- B. MyAadhaar
- C. DigiLocker
- D. UMANG
Q9. At present, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) functions as a statutory authority under which one of the following ministries?
- A. Ministry of Home Affairs
- B. Ministry of Communications
- C. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
- D. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
Q10. With reference to the K.S. Puttaswamy litigation and its bearing on Aadhaar, consider the following statements:
1. The 2017 privacy verdict was delivered by a nine-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
2. It held the right to privacy to be a fundamental right intrinsic to Article 21.
3. In the 2018 Aadhaar judgment, the Court struck down the mandatory linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts and mobile connections.
4. In the 2018 judgment, the Court held that the Aadhaar Act could not have been passed as a Money Bill and struck it down in its entirety.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- The 2017 privacy verdict was delivered by a nine-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
- It held the right to privacy to be a fundamental right intrinsic to Article 21.
- In the 2018 Aadhaar judgment, the Court struck down the mandatory linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts and mobile connections.
- In the 2018 judgment, the Court held that the Aadhaar Act could not have been passed as a Money Bill and struck it down in its entirety.
- A. 1, 2 and 3
- B. 2 and 4 only
- C. 1 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q11. Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which one of the following is the principal body established to adjudicate on instances of non-compliance with the Act?
- A. The Data Protection Authority of India
- B. The Data Protection Board of India
- C. The Central Information Commission
- D. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
Q12. As reported within about three months of its rollout in the digital-identity ecosystem administered under MeitY, roughly how many entities had onboarded as Offline Verification Seeking Entities (OVSEs) to accept Aadhaar offline verification through the New Aadhaar App?
- A. 10
- B. 100
- C. 1,000
- D. 10,000