To ensure data privacy and data misuse of your Aadhaar card, it is advisable to generate an Aadhaar Virtual ID (VID) from the website of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for your safety. To generate a virtual Aadhaar number, you need not wait till the time someone asks you to authenticate your Aadhaar for e-KYC for availing financial services. The 16 digit virtual ID doesn’t expire unless you use it.
According to UIDAI website, no expiry period has been fixed for Aadhaar Virtual ID which will remain valid till the time a new VID is generated by the Aadhaar card holder. Upon generation, a temporary, revocable and 16-digit random number mapped with your Aadhaar card number is sent on your mobile phone.
If you have it, the VID replaces your Aadhaar card number and decimates any necessity to share it with a third party for KYC activation process.
A step-by-step guide to generate your Virtual Aadhar ID:
1. Go to the website of UIDAI and click on the “Virtual ID (VID) Generator” section.
2. Enter your Aadhaar card number and the random security code on the page.
3. You will immediately get an OTP on your mobile phone, which is mentioned in the Aadhaar record.
4. Enter the OTP on the UIDAI page. If you want to generate a new VID then click on the “Generate VID” option. You will also have the option of retrieving your old VID, in case you had one and lost it.
5. An SMS will be sent to your mobile phone mentioning the Virtual Aadhaar ID and its generation date.
6. You can now use this VID when a banks or other financial services provider asks you for biometric authentication as part of the KYC process. Now you do not need to give your thumb impression or get your iris scanned or even share your Aadhaar number. The VID is enough for this purpose.
7. You can also keep the VID with you for your record. In case you forget it, you can generate a fresh VID whenever you want to. The old VID gets expired only after you have used it once and then a new VID needs to be generated. In case you want to generate a fresh VID without having used the earlier VID then you will have to wait for a day.
