ICICI Bank · Governance finding · severity 3 of 5
In July 2023 an acid-attack survivor with eye disfigurement could not open an account at an ICICI Bank branch because its digital know-your-customer (KYC) process required her to blink for a "live photograph" to prove liveness, NDTV and the Press Trust of India reported; a bank executive later offered her an exception. The liveness check is an automated identity step, not described as AI in the record. Her petition, joined by other acid-attack survivors, led India's Supreme Court on 30 April 2025 to direct the Reserve Bank of India to require alternatives to eye-blinking and to set up human review able to override automated KYC rejections. The RBI amended its KYC Directions on 14 August 2025: "The liveness check shall not result in exclusion of person with special needs."
Record last reviewed Oct 21, 2026 · Markdown
Date
Jul 2023 · disclosed May 17, 2024
Institution
ICICI Bank
Country
India
AI system
Digital KYC liveness check requiring a blinking 'live photograph' (automated; not described as AI)
AI?
Automated system not described as AI
The system was automated, but neither the institution nor a regulator described it as AI; it is listed because it is routinely discussed as an AI failure.
Category
Status
Resolved
Severity
3 of 5
Impact
The petitioner could not open the account through the standard digital process; the petition said acid-attack survivors with eye disfigurement were impeded from opening bank accounts and buying SIM cards. · No financial loss is involved. The consequence is regulatory: nationwide changes to how Indian banks and other regulated entities verify liveness in digital KYC.
What happened?
In July 2023 an acid-attack survivor went to an ICICI Bank branch to open an account. According to NDTV, she could not complete the digital KYC process because bank staff insisted she blink her eyes to satisfy the "live photograph" requirement; owing to her injuries she cannot blink. She was told that proving "liveness" under the RBI-regulated KYC process could only be done by blinking in front of the camera. She later met the same obstacle when buying a SIM card.[3][4]
She raised the issue on social media, which drew public criticism; NDTV reported that a bank executive then contacted her and said an exception could be made for her. She and other acid-attack survivors instead petitioned the Supreme Court (Writ Petition (Civil) No. 289 of 2024) for alternative digital KYC methods. On 17 May 2024 a bench led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud issued notice to the Union government, the RBI and others, calling it an "important issue", according to the Press Trust of India.[3][4]
On 30 April 2025 the Supreme Court (Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan), hearing the petition together with one by a petitioner with 100% blindness, held that digital KYC norms that exclude persons with disabilities breach Article 21 of the Constitution. It issued 20 directions, including that the RBI tell all regulated entities to adopt alternative modes of verifying "liveness" beyond "blinking of eyes", and that authorities set up human review of rejected KYC applications in which "a designated human officer shall be empowered to override automated rejections".[1][3]
On 14 August 2025 the RBI issued the Know Your Customer (2nd Amendment) Directions, 2025. They add that no onboarding application, including from persons with disabilities, "shall be rejected without application of mind", that reasons for rejection must be recorded, and that "the liveness check shall not result in exclusion of person with special needs". The judgment and the amendment do not describe the liveness check as artificial intelligence.[1][2]
When did it happen?
- Jul 2023
An acid-attack survivor cannot complete digital KYC at an ICICI Bank branch because she cannot blink for the required "live photograph".[3]
- May 17, 2024
The Supreme Court issues notice to the Union government and the RBI on the survivors' petition for an alternative digital KYC process.[4]
- Apr 30, 2025
The Supreme Court holds digital access part of the right to life and issues 20 directions, including alternatives to blinking and human override of automated KYC rejections.[1][3]
- Aug 14, 2025
The RBI amends its KYC Directions: the liveness check "shall not result in exclusion of person with special needs".[2]
What was the impact?
- Customers: The petitioner could not open the account through the standard digital process; the petition said acid-attack survivors with eye disfigurement were impeded from opening bank accounts and buying SIM cards.[1][2][4]
- Other: No financial loss is involved. The consequence is regulatory: nationwide changes to how Indian banks and other regulated entities verify liveness in digital KYC.[1][2][4]
Severity 3 of 5: A regulatory-level consequence: a Supreme Court judgment found that digital KYC liveness rules excluded people with facial and eye disfigurements and directed the Reserve Bank of India and other regulators to change them nationwide; no financial loss is involved.
How did ICICI Bank respond?
No public statement from ICICI Bank was found as of 2026-10-21 (searched Indian national and legal press coverage of the petition and judgment). NDTV reported that after the July 2023 incident drew attention on social media, a bank executive contacted the customer and said the bank could make an exception for her.[3]
What was the outcome, and did regulators act?
Resolved through regulation: the Supreme Court disposed of the petitions on 30 April 2025 with 20 directions, and the RBI amended its KYC Directions on 14 August 2025 to bar liveness checks that exclude persons with special needs and to require recorded reasons for KYC rejections. No penalty against ICICI Bank was sought or imposed.[1][2]
Why could the acid-attack survivor not open an ICICI Bank account?
In July 2023 the bank's digital KYC process required a "live photograph" in which the customer blinks to prove liveness. Because of her acid-attack injuries she cannot blink, so staff could not complete the process, according to NDTV and the Press Trust of India.
Was the ICICI liveness check an AI system?
It is not described as AI in the record. The Supreme Court judgment and the RBI amendment refer to a liveness check and a "live photograph" in digital KYC and to "automated rejections", but neither calls the system artificial intelligence, so the register marks it as an automated system.
What did the Supreme Court order on digital KYC?
On 30 April 2025 it issued 20 directions, including that the RBI require regulated entities to verify liveness by means other than blinking, accept thumb-impression images, keep paper-based KYC available, and set up human review empowered to override automated KYC rejections.
Did the RBI change its KYC rules after the judgment?
Yes. The RBI's KYC (2nd Amendment) Directions of 14 August 2025 say the liveness check "shall not result in exclusion of person with special needs" and that no KYC application may be rejected without application of mind, with reasons recorded by the officer concerned.
- Writ Petition (Civil) No. 289 of 2024 with W.P. (C) No. 49 of 2025, judgment (2025 INSC 599) court
- Reserve Bank of India (Know Your Customer (KYC)) (2nd Amendment) Directions, 2025 official
- She Could Not Blink For Bank KYC. How It Led To Landmark Top Court Verdict news
- Notice To Centre, RBI For Alternate Digital KYC Method For Acid Attack Survivors news
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