Taxman eyes biometrics, special devices to check GST regn fraud

Biometric authentication is set to replace one-time passwords (OTPs) in GST registration as the government attempts to prevent the use of stolen and fake identities, a top tax official said.

- Gireesh Chandra Prasad

The scheme will authenticate the applicant with Aadhaar and biometrics using special devices, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) chairperson Vivek Johri said. The scheme will be tested out in Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry first before being scaled nationwide in three to six months.

"At present, when somebody opts for Aadhaar authentication, what typically happens is that the person gets an OTP on his mobile number, which, when fed into the system, confirms that this person is whoever he is presenting himself to be. But we found that in cases of stolen identity, the mobile numbers were also changed," Johri said in an interview referring to a recent case of fake GST registrations in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar.