Will Digi Yatra data be used to target tax evaders?

After a media report claimed that the Digi Yatra application will be used to crack down on tax evaders, the Centre has issued a clarification. Rejecting the claims, the Income Tax Department said there are no plans “as on date” for such a move.

Digi Yatra app is a travel initiative that uses facial recognition technology (FRT) to identify air travellers and make their journey seamless. The clarification comes amid concerns from some quarters about the potential for misuse of the flyers’ data, which Digi Yatra has denied.

Let’s take a closer look.

I-T to use Digi Yatra to target tax evaders?

A recent report by The New Indian Express (TNIE) has claimed, citing sources, that the Income Tax department has “accessed” passenger data on the Digi Yatra app, which is being “reconciled with tax filings to check for discrepancies in the declared income”.

Sources purportedly told TNIE that on the basis of this data, the I-T department will start issuing notices in 2025.

The report further claimed the tax department would first target those who do not file tax returns and then those who underreport their income to avoid paying taxes.

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TNIE said the I-T department is “perusing” data of both international and domestic flyers.

Centre rebuffs report

The I-T department and the Ministry of Civil Aviation have rejected the report that Digi Yatra data will be used to go after tax evaders.

“It is seen that news articles have appeared stating that Digi Yatra data will be used to crack down on tax evaders. In this connection it is clarified that as on date there is no such move by the department,” the I-T department said Monday (December 30) in a post on X.

It is seen that news articles have appeared stating that Digiyatra data will be used to crack down on tax evaders.
In this connection it is clarified that as on date there is no such move by the @IncomeTaxIndia department.@nsitharamanoffc@officeofPCM@FinMinIndia@PIB_India

— Income Tax India (@IncomeTaxIndia) December 30, 2024

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Some social media users raised concerns about the phrase “as on date”, asking if there were plans to do so in future.

The civil aviation ministry has called the media report “unfounded and inaccurate”.

“There is no sharing of Digi Yatra passengers data with Indian tax authorities. The Digi Yatra app follows the Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) model, where Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and travel credentials are stored exclusively on the user’s device, not on any central repository. Furthermore, if a user uninstalls the Digi Yatra app, the data is deleted entirely,” the ministry tweeted on Monday.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation hereby clarifies that the recent media report concerning Digi Yatra is based on unfounded and inaccurate claims.

There is no sharing of Digi Yatra passengers data with Indian tax authorities. The Digi Yatra app follows the Self-Sovereign Identity…

— MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) December 30, 2024

It added that “ airport systems automatically purge passenger data within 24 hours of the flight’s departure. It is also important to note that Digi Yatra is designed solely for domestic passengers and does not apply to international travellers.”

Digi Yatra denies claims

A top official of Digi Yatra has also spurned the media report. CEO of Digi Yatra Foundation Suresh Khadakbhavi said they were “unfounded claims based on unknown sources.”

“It is crucial to clarify that Digi Yatra operates without storing any Personally Identifiable Information (PII) in any central repository. This ensures there is no database to breach, share, lose, or leak, safeguarding user privacy,” he said in a post on LinkedIn.

He added that the claim that “the department is pursuing the data of both international and domestic air travellers” is incorrect.

“Digi Yatra is currently available only for domestic air travel. Additionally, without a central database, no data is accessible by any department. By the end of 2024, Digi Yatra achieved a milestone of over nine million [90 lakh] active users, reflecting widespread trust among domestic travellers,” he said.

Digi Yatra is a voluntary service that can be availed by air travellers for a contactless experience at airports. After downloading the app, the user has to give their Aadhaar details and click a selfie for verification.

Once done, they can upload their boarding pass on the app and the flyer’s details are shared with the airport.

The Digi Yatra Foundation, which operates the airport app, was established as a joint venture company in 2019 under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013. Its shareholders are the Airports Authority of India (26 per cent), and five other airports — Hyderabad, Kochi, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi.

Flyers have previously flagged privacy concerns about the potential abuse of biometric data on the app. However, authorities maintain that data shared by users is stored in an encrypted format, not on any central repository but on the user’s phone.

With inputs from agencies