UP RTO website leaking phone numbers of Driving License holders

I only found a Darpan page for Uttar Pradesh; I'm not sure about other states.

BHPian nicodash recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Out of curiosity, I Googled my phone number, and the first result was from the Parivahan website.

Apparently, the Uttar Pradesh Parivahan Department has uploaded 'Darpan' reports on the sarathi.parivahan.gov.in portal and set them to public visibility. I assume this is intentional, given that the name 'Darpan' (which means 'mirror' in English) suggests transparency.

Here's the main listing page where they've organized license numbers by district:

Clicking on any of the blue numbers in the screenshot above opens a list of license holders and applicants from that district:

As a result, your name and phone number are publicly exposed, making you vulnerable to spammers and scammers. I only found a Darpan page for Uttar Pradesh; I'm not sure about other states. The data seems to be from 2022 onwards.

This is just one example of how government agencies handle sensitive user/citizen data carelessly, exposing us to cyber criminals. I'm not sharing the exact link here, but I'm not sure what's the point of hiding it when everything is on Google anyway.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.