Gemalto apology to the people of India

PUBLIC NOTICE

On October 15, 2018, Gemalto published an inaccurate Breach Level Index report and press release that included a news article about an alleged and unverified Aadhaar data breach. I, Philippe Vallee, as CEO of Gemalto, extend my sincerest apologies on the grave error on our part for the publication of this erroneous report and press release.

Gemalto wants to make it clear that this error has been corrected in the revised report. All concerned parties should take note that we have not been able to find any verified or substantiated data breach of Aadhaar data. As a result, Gemalto has withdrawn the data breach claim from the Breach Level Index Report.

Gemalto is deeply regretful for releasing this unverified information in this report and failing to conduct sufficient due diligence prior to publishing the information. We are taking the opportunity to revisit the methodology behind this report and introduce more stringent criteria and validation of entries.

Through the publication of this report, Gemalto has caused prejudices in the minds of the general public at large against Aadhaar which we deeply regret. We never intended to malign Aadhaar, India’s prestigious identity mission project, by unknowingly committing the mistake. We are launching an internal investigation and will take additional appropriate action internally. In addition to publishing and correcting the facts in the Breach Level Index Report on our website, we are placing this advertisement as part of our effort to ensure that the authentic and accurate information reaches out to the public.

Further, as an organization providing cybersecurity expertise and solutions, we have not been able to find any evidence of any Aadhaar data being breached. Any inconvenience caused to the people of India by our actions is deeply regretted.