Be aware! All you 'Angel Priyas' out there, Facebook is testing Aadhaar authentication for its users

Social media giant Facebook is asking some of its Indian users to fill in their Aadhaar card details before signing up for new account, said a company spokesperson.

The reports of Facebook asking for Aadhaar details to create a new account surfaced few days ago when a user posted some screen shots on Reddit. The user was asked to provide his first and last name same as one on his Aadhaar card.

The company said it asked the details of Aadhaar card as part of a small test, however, it was not mandatory for users to do so.

"We want to make sure people can use the names they're known by on Facebook, and can easily connect with friends and family. This is a small test where we provide additional language when people sign up for an account to say that using the name on their Aadhaar card makes it easier for friends to recognize them. This is an optional prompt which we are testing, people are not required to enter the name on their Aadhaar card," GadgetsNow quoted a Facebook spokesperson as saying.

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Facebook is making several changes in its policies for its India market and recently the Mark Zuckerberg and co. had changed it approach to identify increasing “fake news” on its social media platform.

The social-media network had put “disputed” labels on stories that fact-checkers found false.

Instead, now it will bring up “related articles” next to the false stories that give context from fact-checkers on the stories’ problems.

India is Facebook’s biggest market with over 241 million monthly active users. The US is close second with 240 million monthly active users.