How to lock (or unlock) Aadhaar biometric details online: A step-by-step guide

Aadhaar is one of the most important pieces of documents that you can have in India. It acts as a proof of address and it is vital for applying for a host of other documents in the country. Now, Aadhaar also citizen’s biometric data. It order to strength privacy and confidentiality, UIDAI enables Aadhaar holders to temporarily lock their Aadhaar biometric details. On doing so, the Aadhaar holder will not be able to use their biometric data for authentication.

If you want to safeguard your Aadhaar biometric data, here is an easy guide of how you can lock and unlock your Aadhaar biometric data.

How to lock Aadhaar biometric details online

Step 1: Go to Aadhaar’s official website on your web browser. Alternatively, you can click here: https://resident.uidai.gov.in/.

Step 2: Click on My Aadhaar menu on the top.

Step 3: Now go to the Aadhaar Services section and click on Lock/Unlock Biometrics option.

Step 4: Click on the checkbox that says, “I Understand that after biometric lock enable, I will not perform biometric authentication until I unlock Biometrics” and then click on Lock/Unlock Biometrics option.

Step 5: Enter your 12-digit Aadhaar Number that appears on your card. Then the Captcha code and click on the Send OTP option.

Step 6: Once you have received the OTP, tap on the Enter OTP option, type in the OTP and click on the submit button.

Step 7: In the following screen, click on the Enable button.

Step 8: Once your Aadhaar Biometrics have been locked you will get a message on your screen that reads ‘Your Aadhaar number is successfully locked. Use VID for authentication.’