How to Check Aadhaar Biometric Lock or Unlock?

With the 12-digit Aadhaar Number issued to all residents of India from UIDAI, this has become one of the most important document. However, the safety of the same has now been upgraded by “locking” of the biometric details till the Aadhaar holder allows!

Aadhaar card is most widely accepted across India as the document for identity proof and address proof in both Government as well as in the private sectors. When you provide Aadhaar document as a proof to certain entities, they get access to your biometrics details. The wide acceptance of Aadhaar makes it prone to duplication and misuse of data. To prevent the mishandling of your personal data, UIDAI has provided the facility to lock/ unlock your online biometric information like the fingerprint and the Iris data. This facility allows Aadhaar holders to lock their biometrics and temporarily unlock it as and when needed. Biometric lock and unlock helps you to maintain the confidentiality and privacy of your personal data.

Once you opt for locking your Aadhaar biometrics, it will be locked and not accessible by default. If any entity wants to use Aadhaar to authenticate, this must be unlocked, or the locking system must be disabled.

You can check the Aadhaar Card status by accessing it through (1) Mobile App or through (2) Website.

Accessing through Mobile App

When you access your Aadhaar profile through mobile app, the profile will be locked by default and it will show in red font:

‘BIOMETRICS LOCKED’. Below that, it would say, ‘Click to unlock’. Once you click on this, your biometric profile will be unlocked for 10 minutes and a message of ‘Biometric Data is unlocked’ will be displayed on the screen.

Below are the steps that you need to follow to check Aadhar Card status through your mobile.

For locking you Aadhaar Biometrics, you must follow the steps below:

• Download mAadhaar App in your mobile and install it
• In the App, create your Aadhaar profile and set password and open it
• Click on the ‘three dots’ menu located at top right corner of the screen
• Select ‘Biometric Settings’ option
• Check on ‘Enable Biometric Lock’ and click on the ‘tick mark’ at the top of the screen
• An OTP generation request will be sent from your mobile
• UIDAI will send an OTP to the same mobile
• OTP will be taken up by the application itself and verify automatically. You have no option to enter OTP manually
• You must approve the task and your biometrics will be locked
• It takes up to 6 hours to activate the Aadhaar locking

Steps to unlock your biometrics through mAadhaar App are as follows:

• Login to mAadhaar App
• Use your password and open your profile
• Click on the ‘three dots’ menu located at top right corner of the screen
• Select ‘Biometric Settings’ option
• Unselect ‘Enable Biometric Lock’ and click on the ‘tick mark’ at the top of the screen and complete the process
• OTP will be send to the same mobile
• OTP will be taken up by the application automatically
• You must approve the process and once approved, your Aadhaar biometrics will be unlocked for 10 minutes
• Biometrics will be locked again after 10 minutes. So, authentication should be done before that

Accessing through website

By accessing UIDAI website also you can lock or unlock.

For locking you Aadhaar Biometrics, you must follow the steps below:

• Go to: uidai.gov.in, click on ‘Aadhaar Services’ and then select ‘Lock/ Unlock Biometrics’
• Enter 12-digit Aadhaar Number and then enter Security Code
• Click on ‘Send OTP’ option
• OTP will be sent to your registered mobile number
• Enter that OTP and click on ‘Login’ button
• This process allows you to lock the biometrics
• Enter the 4-digit security code that appears on the screen and click on ‘Enable’
• This will lock your biometrics

Steps to unlock your biometrics through UIDAI website:

To access the biometrics, you must unlock it again. The process of unlocking through the website is as follows:

• Click on ‘Login’ button
• Enter Aadhaar number and the security code in their respective spaces
• Click on ‘Send OTP’ button
• OTP will be sent to your registered mobile number
• Enter that OTP and click on ‘Login’ button
• Enter the security code and click on ‘Unlock’ button
• Your Aadhaar biometrics will be opened temporarily and you can access the data for 10 minutes
• On the screen, the date and time of locking will be mentioned, and the biometrics will be automatically locked after that Disabling Your Aadhaar Biometrics

In case you do not want to lock your biometrics, the lock could be disabled permanently

• You can disable your biometrics lock only by accessing it through online portal
• There is no provision of disabling your Aadhaar biometrics lock from mAadhaar App
• To disable it online, you must access UIDAI portal and login using Aadhaar card
• Enter the security code displayed on the portal and click on ‘Disable’ button
• Your Biometrics will be permanently disabled
• Once disabled, you do not have to ‘unlock’ your Aadhaar biometrics
• Disabling your biometrics permanently makes your data unprotected
• In case you want to protect your biometric data, you have to ‘lock’ it again

There are certain points to remember regarding locking and unlocking Aadhaar Biometric.

• For the process of lock/ unlock of biometrics, the OTP will be sent only to the mobile number which is registered with Aadhaar. Hence, a registered mobile number is essential for this feature
• In case your mobile number is not yet registered with Aadhaar, you can visit your nearest Aadhaar Enrolment centre or use the mobile update facility
• If your mobile number is not linked with Aadhaar, this service will not be available to you
• You do not require to pay any fee for locking, unlocking or disabling the biometrics
• This process of lock/ unlock of biometrics is only possible online
• Once the biometrics are locked, if you want to try UID for authentication purposes by using biometric parameters like fingerprint or retinal matching, you will get a specific error code of ‘330’. This error code indicates that your biometrics are locked.

Once the biometric information is locked, only you can authenticate any request or transaction for Aadhaar based verification of either iris or thumb scanning. It will be done by sending an OTP to your registered mobile number. Apart from you, no one else could lock or unlock your Aadhaar biometrics.

UIDAI recommends updating biometric data once in every 10 years. Also, in case of any accident or disease, there could be change in biometrics and updating the information is recommended in those instances.

Recommended Read: What Is Aadhaar KYC? Know E-KYC For Aadhaar Card