UPSC plans facial recognition, Aadhaar authentication to stop fraud

New Delhi: The Union Public Service Commission is mulling over using technologies that will help effectively identify candidates to prevent fraud, Scroll reported.

The constitutional body that conducts recruitments to All India and the Central Civil Services will introduce technologies upgrading examination system with Aadhaar-based fingerprint authentication, facial recognition and security camera surveillance.

The commission said in its tender document that the technologies will help “match and cross-check the biometric details” of the candidates alongside monitoring them during examination to stop ‘cheating, fraud, unfair means and impersonation.’

The data and images submitted by candidates to the Commission during online registration will be shared with the service provider for Aadhaar-based fingerprint authentication and facial recognition, Scroll reported.

Afterwards, identity of the candidates will be verified at the examination centre to prevent impersonlisation.

“QR code on the Admit Card (containing roll number of the candidate) should be scanned to auto-fetch the candidate’s details from Application Database (provided by UPSC),” the tender document was quoted as saying.

It is reported that “In case QR code on Admit Card is not scannable, then manual entry of candidate’s roll number from Admit Card has to be done.”

The commission plans to set up at examination centres across the country the “CCTV/video surveillance with recording and live broadcast system to monitor various activities of the candidates and other persons deployed”.

The tender document wanted the service provider to install adequate number of security cameras thus enabling live viewing at the commission’s control room.

The directions follow allegations of fraud against trainee Indian Administrative Service officer Puja Khedkar.

Khedkar is accused of forging documents to appear for the Civil Services Examination on 12 occasions.