Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India urges insurers to adopt Aadhaar and DigiLocker and avoid digital dark patterns

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India held a workshop for chief compliance officers of all insurers on digital authentication, document services and consumer protection. In his keynote address, Chairman Ajay Seth encouraged insurers to adopt Aadhaar authentication, integrate DigiLocker into operational workflows and ensure transparent and fair digital practices. Insurers were urged to adopt face authentication, which supports liveness detection and can be accessed through a mobile phone. The workshop presented Aadhaar applications from customer onboarding to claims settlement, highlighting its potential to reduce paperwork, improve data accuracy and mitigate fraud. Aadhaar authentication should be conducted exclusively through the Unique Identification Authority of India. A separate session explored DigiLocker and Entity Locker applications across insurance operations and product lines. The session on dark patterns reviewed the Central Consumer Protection Authority’s Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. Insurers were told not to require website visitors to provide personal details, such as mobile numbers, as a condition for accessing information or obtaining a quote. Digital insurance services should enable consumers to understand products, make informed decisions and control their personal information and communications. Transparent disclosures, fair choice architecture and consent for specific purposes were identified as central safeguards.