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By Alison Saldanah For the second time in the first three months of 2018, the vulnerabilities of the Aadhaar programme €" the world's largest biometric database €" were exposed when American business technology website   ZDNet   > reported  on 23 March 23, 2018, that the personal data of millions of enrolled Indians could be accessed through unsecure websites and mobile apps of third-party agencies that use the identification system for authenticating transactions. Aadhaar comprises a unique 12-digit number assigned to Indian residents. As of 29 March, 2018, more than 1.2 billion Indians €" or 99.7 percent of the population €" have  enrolled  in the programme. The database, which is fast becoming an integral part of Indian policy, includes fingerprints, iris scans and demographic details of every enrolled individual. From 1 July, 2018, the system will also include facial recognition for identity authentication purposes. One night in mid-February 201...

हमारे बच्‍चों का मनोविज्ञान बड़ों की पकड़ से हर दिन दूर होता जा रहा है. ऐसा लगता है, मानो पेड़ धीरे-धीरे जड़ से ही दूर हो रहा है.   दयाशंकर मिश्र   |  Updated: Mar 30, 2018, 08:01 AM IST सुनने में बात थोड़ी अटपटी लग सकती है. इसमें नया क्‍या है. सब अपने से प्रेम करते हैं. कुछ तो अपने से प्रेम में डूबे रहते हैं. लेकिन ज़रा ठहकर सोचिए. अब यह बातें कुछ पुरानी सी लगने लगी हैं. हमारे विचार, चिंतन शैली पर सुकून से अधिक बाज़ार/ज़रूरतें हावी होती जा रही हैं. आप अपने किसी भी नज़दीकी को सैंपल के तौर पर चुन लीजिए. बहुत नहीं उनसे केवल तीन-तीन महीने के अंतर पर बात करते रहिए. आप आसानी से समझ जाएंगे कि उनकी चिंतन प्रक्रिया का केंद्र निरंतर बदल रहा है. इस बदलाव में उनका अंतर्मन कहीं नहीं है. जीवन की गुणवत्‍ता कहीं नहीं है. सारा ज़ोर बस इस बात पर दिखेगा कि मेरे पास क्‍या है? हमारे बच्‍चों का मनोविज्ञान बड़ों की पकड़ से हर दिन दूर होता जा रहा है. ऐसा लगता है, मानो पेड़ धीरे-धीरे जड़ से ही दूर हो रहा है. हमारे एक मित्र हैं. दूसरों से ख़ूब बातें करते हैं. बेइंतहा बातें. बातें ही बातें....

New Delhi: WhatsApp Messenger has updated its ‘Delete for Everyone’ feature. From the 7-minutes or 420 seconds deadline, Whatsapp users can now delete sent messages within 4096 seconds or 68 minutes and 16 seconds. However, it must be noted that the extended deadline is live for WhatsApp Android beta version 2.18.69. A stable release for Android and iOS is expected to follow soon. Who can use this feature? Curently only WhatsApp Android beta testers can make use of the the extended deadline for ‘Delete for Everyone’ feature. How will it impact you? Deleting messages for everyone allows you to delete specific messages you have sent to either a group or an individual chat. Once the new message is over its beta testing, users will be able to delete messages for everyone even after an hour has passed. But once, the set time has passed, there is no way to delete messages for everyone. In order for messages to be successfully deleted for everyone, both you and your recipien...

Nokia 1, the budget smartphone with Android Oreo (Go edition) and 4G connectivity has been officially launched in the Indian market. Nokia 1 will have a price of Rs 5,499 in India. Nokia 1 with Android Go Edition launched in India: Price is Rs 5,499 and here are the details Nokia 1 , the budget smartphone with  Android  Oreo (Go edition) and 4G connectivity has been officially launched for the Indian market. Nokia 1’s price in India will be Rs 5,499 and the budget smartphone will be available at all leading mobile phone outlets from March 28, 2018, says the company. Nokia 1 with Android Oreo Go edition was first announced at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, in February 2018. Nokia 1 Price in India, launch offers Nokia 1 will come in red and dark blue colour variant for a price of Rs 5,499. HMD Global is also launching Xpress On covers for the phone, starting April, 2018 at an price of Rs 450 each. Options available in Xpress Covers include azure and...

Facebook Cambridge Analytica data scandal: We are giving away way too much data to apps on Facebook and Android than needed. The world seems to have suddenly woken up to the perils of offering our data free to tech companies. But the fact is that the Cambridge Analytica incident is not really a surprise. It has just reinforced what most of us believed all along, that our data will be misused. But then we did not raise as much as a byte-size sigh in protest. But it is time to ask some important questions. Why does a game app for instance, need to know which school you went to or where you work? Why does a one-time DP change require you to surrender your friends list? And you will realise that you are giving away way too much data to apps on  Facebook  and  Android  than needed. To be fair, both the platforms have links where you can see what they know about you and even offer some options to edit the same. You should start using these to figure out what thes...

25 Mar 2018: UIDAI denies claims of Aadhaar data breach on Indane's systems The  UIDAI  has denied the claims of an Aadhaar data breach on the systems run by state-owned utility company Indane. Earlier, a  report  by ZDNet suggested that the Aadhaar details of all registered Indane customers were exposed online and could be accessed by anyone. UIDAI said that "there is no truth in this story" and that they were "contemplating legal action against ZDNet." Context: Report claimed Indane's unsecured API put Aadhaar data at risk The report claimed that Indane's API wasn't secure, allowing access to personal information like names, unique 12-digit Aadhaar numbers, and bank names related to those Aadhaar numbers. "The affected endpoint uses a hardcoded access token, which, when decoded, translates to 'INDAADHAARSECURESTATUS,' allowing anyone to query Aadhaar numbers against the database without any additional authentication,...

While filing ITR, it is always better to keep few things readily available with you like - Aadhaar number, PAN Card, Bank details and other investment documents. Filing ITR every year is very important for every individual who is an  assessee . While filing ITR, it is always better to keep few things readily available with you like - Aadhaar number, PAN Card, Bank details and other investment documents. You can easily file your own ITR through e-filing portal using these 5 simple steps Step 1:  Visit the e-filing website at  https://incometaxindiaefilling.gov.in . If you have already registered yourself, you need to click on the ‘Login Here’ to proceed further to e-filing portal. Step 2:  Once you will proceed towards the ‘Registered User’ tab and click on the ‘login’ virtual switch, you will be directed to the next window where you need to enter your User ID (which is your PAN number), password, date of birth and auto-generated captcha. Step3:...

Not got the Form 16 from your employer? You can still file your returns following all these steps and complete the e-filing procedure as mentioned thereon. 1) Get all your Pay Slips:  Accumulate all the pay slips for a particular financial year, even if you have switched job in between. 2) Compute your total salary income:  Calculate your gross total salary. However, employer’s PF contribution will not be considered while calculating the taxable salary but your own contribution will be 3) Know how much tax is deducted:  To check the deduction of the amount, you have to refer to Form 26AS. The deducted on the Form 26AS has to be same as your employer has mentioned in pay slips. 4) Transport and Medical Allowances:  If you are getting these allowances, you can get exemption up to Rs 34,200 (Transport Allowance Rs 19,200 and Medical Allowance Rs 15,000 annually) while doing the computation of your income tax. However, from next financial year, ...

Reliance JioPhones, which run on KaiOS, a Linux-based light mobile Operating System (OS), may soon get WhatsApp. According to Wabetainfo.com, a fan site that tests new WhatsApp features early, as of February 2018 KaiOS Technologies have acquired many new partners, including Facebook that also owns the popular messaging platform. “After stopping support for BlackBerry OS and Windows Phone 8, the Facebook-owned messaging platform is focusing to develop the app for this platform, providing an app for JioPhones,” the website said late on Wednesday. “We remember WhatsApp will stop to support Nokia S40 on next December 31, leaving the Symbian platform, but KaiOS will be supported instead,” the website added. KaiOS combines the powerful capabilities of a smartphone with the affordability of a basic handset. “The highly-coveted social media app has made its way to KaiOS-powered feature phones. This partnership supports access to Fa...

Linking of Aadhaar with insurance policies has been made mandatory. Though the government has extended the timeline to link your  Aadhaar  details with financial services from 31st December 2017 to 31st of March 2018, still it needs to be done. Problems might arise with claim settlements if the insurance policies are not linked by the given deadline. There are a few ways in which you can link your Aadhaar with your insurance policies. Documents needed There are no specific documents required to link your Aadhaar but the policy holder must have their policy number, Aadhaar number and PAN readily available while linking. In case the Aadhaar Number not available then the policyholder is required to provide proof of application of enrolment for Aadhaar Further, for the KYC requirement, the policyholder is also required to provide their PAN details. In case the PAN not available then certified copy of an officially valid document needs to be submitted. The insurance po...

The purpose of a provident fund is mainly providing financial security as well as stability to retired or elderly people. In most cases, people start contributing in these funds when they begin their life as an employee. The contributions are made in regular intervals, which in most cases is on a monthly basis. The main function of such a saving tool is to aid employees to be able to save an amount of their salary each. This amount may be used in certain cases such as the employee is temporarily or permanently unfit to work or even at retirement. The investments that are made by a group of people or employees are pooled in and invested by a trust. In the year 1952, the Government of India set up the Employees Provident Fund Organisation to help citizens recognise the need to save for their retirement or accumulate a corpus for their future. For those new to the scheme, the  EPF  (Employees’ Provident Fund) is controlled by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Governm...