Project Risk

The UID project does face certain risks in its implementation, which have to be addressed through its architecture and the design of its incentives. Some of these risks include:

1) Adoption risks:

There will have to be sufficient, early demand from residents for the UID number. Without critical mass among key demographic groups (the rural and the poor) the number will not be successful in the long term. To ensure this, the UIDAI will have to model de-duplication and authentication to be both effective and viable for participating agencies and service providers.

2) Political risks:

The UID project will require support from state governments across India. The project will also require sufficient support from individual government departments, especially in linking public services to the UID, and from service providers joining as Registrars.

3) Enrolment risks:

The project will have to be carefully designed to address risks of low enrolment – such as creating sufficient touch points in rural areas, enabling and motivating Registrars, ensuring that documentary requirements don't derail enrolment in disadvantaged communities – as well as managing difficulties in address verification, name standards, lack of informationon date of birth, and hard to record fingerprints.

4) Risks of scale:

The project will have to handle records that approach one billion in number. This creates significant risks in biometric de-duplication as well as in administration, storage, and continued expansion of infrastructure.

5) Technology risks:

Technology is a key part of the UID program, and this is the first time in the world that storage, authentication and de-duplication of biometrics are being attempted on this scale. The authority will have to address the risks carefully – by choosing the right technology in the architecture, biometrics, and data management tools; managing obsolescence and data quality; designing the transaction services model and innovating towards the best possible result.

6) Privacy and security risks:

The UIDAI will have to ensure that resident data is not shared or compromised.

7) Sustainability risks:

The economic model for the UIDAI will have to be designed to be sustainable in the long-term, and ensure that the project can adhere to the standards mandated by the Authority.