RS Sharma vs privacy champions: Both parties claim victory after TRAI chief's Aadhaar dare

It's been two days since Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Chairman RS Sharma, a big supporter of Aadhaar, dared people to harm him using his Aadhaar number.

By Sunday evening, hackers, armed with the 12 digits and challenged by his dare, claimed to have dug out his six bank account numbers and various other personal data. But Sharma refused to budge, using his Twitter handle to argue with hackers that it wasn’t because of Aadhaar that all this had been revealed.

As the day progressed, Sharma found support with several Aadhaar backers also posting their unique ID numbers and challenging others to harm them.

Also Read: Following RS Sharma controversy, hacker asks PM Modi to post his Aadhaar on Twitter 

But Sharma may have reasons to worry, not least because the law doesn’t allow anyone to reveal its Aadhaar number but because of the amount of his personal data that is now available online, assuming all of it is true.

My Aadhaar number is 7621 7768 2740
Now I give this challenge to you: Show me one concrete example where you can do any harm to me!

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— RS Sharma (@rssharma3) July 28, 2018

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the data. Sharma did not answer the calls made on his mobile number.

Twitter users posted his demat account details, the IFSC and MICR codes of his six bank account numbers, voter ID, his debit card usage and use of his Aadhaar card for sale of organic goods by Lella Dhar Organics of Hari Sevak Sharma.

Others deposited Re 1 in Sharma’s bank accounts to prove their point.

Even as Sharma -- a big supporter of Aadhaar: he was the second in command at Unique Identification Authority of India after Nandan Nilekani -- took on the id programme's critics, the manner surprised many.

Sharma is otherwise a very affable and polite IAS officer. His colleagues at TRAI are very proud of being led by him and speak very highly of the way he has stood up to bullying by the old GSM lobby.

Sharma retires as TRAI Chairman on August 9 and rumour has it that he may be appointed Chairman of the new data protection authority that the government plans to set up.