- Friday, February 28, 2025
Opposition leaders alleged a major privacy breach on the portal wherein personal details of those who took the jab were leaked and made “freely available” on the portal.
By: Shubham Ghosh
SOURCES IN the Indian government on Monday (12) said CoWIN, the country’s Covid-19 vaccination registration portal, doesn’t gather any personal details of an individual, including date of birth and address, after opposition leaders alleged a major privacy breach on the portal wherein personal details of those who took the jab were leaked and made “freely available” on the portal.
The information included mobile numbers, passport numbers, numbers of Aadhaar (a unique identity number of Indian citizens), voters ID and others.
According to the government sources, the portal only collects the data when an individual has either received one or two dose or two doses and a precaution dose, India Today reported.
India’s health ministry is working on a detailed report on the alleged CoWIN data breach, the sources added.
Saket Gokhale, national spokesperson of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), one of the opposition parties, said details of some high-profile opposition leaders, including former finance minister P Chidambaram, were available in the public domain. He said private information of some journalists was also accessible online.
Gokhale said “personal details of literally every Indian who got a Covid-19 vaccination are freely available on this leaked database”, the India Today report added.
In a series of tweets, Gokhale said, “There has been a MAJOR data breach of Modi Govt where personal details of ALL vaccinated Indians including their mobile nos., Aadhaar numbers, Passport numbers, Voter ID, Details of family members etc. have been leaked & are freely available.
“There are several Opposition leaders which include: 1. Rajya Sabha MP & TMC Leader Derek O’Brien 2. Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram 3. Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh & K.C. Venugopal
“The personal details of LITERALLY EVERY INDIAN who got a Covid-19 vaccination are freely available on this leaked database.
Question is: How did personal details incl passport no, Aadhaar no., etc. get leaked when Modi Govt claims it follows “strong data security”?
“Why is the Modi Govt incl Home Ministry NOT AWARE of this leak & why haven’t Indians been informed about a data breach?
“Who has the Modi Govt given access to sensitive personal data of Indians incl Aadhaar & Passport nos. which enabled this leak?”
The personal details of LITERALLY EVERY INDIAN who got a Covid-19 vaccination are freely available on this leaked database.
Question is:
? How did personal details incl passport no, Aadhaar no., etc. get leaked when Modi Govt claims it follows "strong data security"?
(5/7)
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) June 12, 2023
Supriya Sule, who recently became one of the working presidents of the Nationalist Congress Party, said the news of the alleged leak “deeply concerning and unacceptable” if true.
“If these reports hold true, they are not only deeply concerning but also unacceptable! The government owes us immediate clarification and must ensure those responsible for this breach are held accountable,” she wrote, quoting a news report.
If these reports hold true, they are not only deeply concerning but also unacceptable! The government owes us immediate clarification and must ensure those responsible for this breach are held accountable.https://t.co/UdUTLPbYIS
— Supriya Sule (@supriya_sule) June 12, 2023
