Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced a landmark achievement in combating online ticketing fraud, with 3.03 crore suspicious user IDs deactivated in 2025. Speaking in Parliament, he emphasized the role of cutting-edge tech in making train bookings fairer for everyday passengers.
During a Rajya Sabha session, Vaishnaw outlined the multi-pronged strategy: Aadhaar authentication, advanced cybersecurity layers, and fraud prevention tools. These efforts blocked 6,043 crore malicious bot requests in six months ending December 2025, a testament to the system’s resilience.
The National Cyber Crime Portal received 376 complaints involving 3.99 lakh suspect bookings, prompting swift action. Notably, 12,819 suspicious email domains were blacklisted this year, tightening the noose on cybercriminals.
A game-changer for Tatkal quotas is the new Aadhaar-OTP verification for online bookings, ensuring only verified users access these high-demand tickets. This addresses long-standing issues of bots and agents dominating availability.
The minister highlighted defenses against sophisticated threats: layered CAPTCHAs counter scripting and DDoS attacks, while OWASP-compliant measures patch security gaps. A CDN optimizes performance by handling static content, easing load on core servers.
Tools like AKAMAI’s anti-bot tech effectively sift genuine traffic from fraud, drastically cutting suspicious activities. As Indian Railways modernizes, these initiatives promise uninterrupted service, restoring trust in digital ticketing for millions.