NEW DELHI — The Unique Identification Authority of India widened the rollout of its new Aadhaar app on Thursday, promoting face-authentication verification and QR-based digital sharing to stop misuse of physical identity copies. The system lets holders share only selected details with merchants.

The UIDAI unveiled the redesigned app earlier this week as a privacy-first replacement for photocopies of Aadhaar cards. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said the tool allows verification at hotels, airports and shops without handing over a printed document, reducing the risk of fraud and data leakage.

Under the new system, users grant consent before any information is shared, and businesses receive only the minimum details required for a transaction. Face authentication serves as an additional security layer, building on the biometric infrastructure already used for welfare disbursements and banking under the Aadhaar-enabled Payment System.

Digital rights groups, including the Internet Freedom Foundation, have repeatedly urged the UIDAI to strengthen consent and data-minimisation safeguards. The authority said the app addresses those concerns by keeping verification decentralised and by not storing shared data on merchant devices, though independent auditors have yet to publish detailed assessments.

The expanded rollout comes as India accelerates digital public infrastructure adoption across financial services and travel. MeitY officials said phased availability on Android and iOS would continue in the coming weeks, with wider merchant onboarding expected before nationwide deployment.