Security issues continue to haunt users of government’s COVID-19 Aarogya Setu App. Government of india Claims aarogya setu app is 'un-hackable', after the 'ethical' French hacker, a Bengaluru programmer breached the app’s defences in less than four hours.
Aarogya Setu, a coronavirus tracking app, launched by the Union Health Ministry on April 2 has been downloaded by 90 million people so far. Developed by the National Informatics Centre, a part of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the app helps users identify whether they are at a risk of COVID-19 infection.
Mr. Baptise, who goes by Elliot Alderson on Twitter, also claimed a security issue has been found in your app. The privacy of 90 million Indians is at stake.
The government in response to this claim released a statement that it is not possible to hack this app and it is safe for users.
According to Buzzfeed, now that the government is making it mandatory to install the app, the programmer felt like he needed to find a way to not install the app on his phone. His shared,
"My concern is that just like with Aadhaar, soon you won’t be able to go to a restaurant or a movie theater without the Aarogya Setu app installed. Even if the government doesn’t make it mandatory, cinema owners are going to impose it on you. That’s the kind of culture we have".
In just 4 hours, Jay was able to install the app without giving away any personal information like name, age, gender, travel history, COVID-19 symptom checker and also the registration page that required people to sign up with their cellphone numbers.. He was even marked "safe" even though he didn't give any permission like bluetooth, gps for it to run on his phone. Apparently, it is quite easy to revoke the app.
The app will also be required for travel on special trains and could become mandatory for Indians travelling by public transport and flights. He also said that the app performed poorly against the ones that were being built by the likes of Apple and Google, which do not store personal information.
Aarogya Setu, a coronavirus tracking app, launched by the Union Health Ministry on April 2 has been downloaded by 90 million people so far. Developed by the National Informatics Centre, a part of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the app helps users identify whether they are at a risk of COVID-19 infection.
Mr. Baptise, who goes by Elliot Alderson on Twitter, also claimed a security issue has been found in your app. The privacy of 90 million Indians is at stake.
Hi @SetuAarogya,— Elliot Alderson (@fs0c131y) May 5, 2020
A security issue has been found in your app. The privacy of 90 million Indians is at stake. Can you contact me in private?
Regards,
PS: @RahulGandhi was right
The government in response to this claim released a statement that it is not possible to hack this app and it is safe for users.
Statement from Team #AarogyaSetu on data security of the App. pic.twitter.com/JS9ow82Hom— Aarogya Setu (@SetuAarogya) May 5, 2020
According to Buzzfeed, now that the government is making it mandatory to install the app, the programmer felt like he needed to find a way to not install the app on his phone. His shared,
"My concern is that just like with Aadhaar, soon you won’t be able to go to a restaurant or a movie theater without the Aarogya Setu app installed. Even if the government doesn’t make it mandatory, cinema owners are going to impose it on you. That’s the kind of culture we have".
In just 4 hours, Jay was able to install the app without giving away any personal information like name, age, gender, travel history, COVID-19 symptom checker and also the registration page that required people to sign up with their cellphone numbers.. He was even marked "safe" even though he didn't give any permission like bluetooth, gps for it to run on his phone. Apparently, it is quite easy to revoke the app.
I revoked the Aarogya Setu app's location and Bluetooth permissions and it tells me I am still safe, so 🤷🏽♂️ pic.twitter.com/G4CkO9zWTB— ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (@PranavDixit) May 2, 2020
The app will also be required for travel on special trains and could become mandatory for Indians travelling by public transport and flights. He also said that the app performed poorly against the ones that were being built by the likes of Apple and Google, which do not store personal information.
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Bengaluru Programmer to Hack 'Un-Hackable' Aarogya Setu App In Just 4 Hrs
Reviewed by Tech Ugly
on
Thursday, May 14, 2020
Rating:
Reviewed by Tech Ugly
on
Thursday, May 14, 2020
Rating:
Indian government has been claiming that the app is secure for the user but it is not. I have not installed it yet. Government should work on other alternatives.
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