In the first session, Dr. Usha Ramanathan spoke about the conception and evolution of the UID project, and brought attention to its erroneous posturing as an ‘identity’ project while in fact being an ‘identification’ project, and the its dangers to the right to privacy.
Colonel (retd) Mathew Thomas, also a petitioner in the PIL against the UID project, presented on the lack of a legislative mandate and adequate data protection provisions, and other pitfalls of the UID project.
Amber Sinha delineated what the now withdrawn draft National Encryption Policy sought to do, and its consequences for privacy of communications and data.
The Internet Democracy Project participated in the roundtable.
