Indian Railways has taken a major step to stop the black marketing of confirm tickets. IRCTC deactivated over 3 crore suspicious user IDs to ensure fair ticket booking for common passengers. This action is part of a larger security plan for the financial year 2025-26 to remove fake accounts and bots from the system.
What actions did IRCTC take against fake IDs?
The Railway Ministry has implemented strict measures to clean up the booking platform. Apart from deactivating millions of accounts, the system is now using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to find fraudulent accounts during high-traffic windows like Tatkal booking.
| Action Taken | Details/Data |
|---|---|
| Suspicious IDs Deactivated | 3.03 Crore |
| IDs Under Investigation | 6.05 Crore |
| Blocked Email Domains | 13,343 |
| Cyber Crime Complaints | 501 cases (4.18 lakh PNRs) |
How will this help common passengers get Tatkal tickets?
Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnav informed the Lok Sabha on June 4, 2026, that Aadhaar-based OTP verification is being rolled out. This system is already active in 322 trains, which led to a 65% increase in the availability of confirm Tatkal tickets. To further stop speculation, a new tiered refund system and strict cancellation rules were introduced between April 1 and April 15, 2026.
Additionally, the railways implemented anti-bot technology like AKAMAI and improved the user interface of the Rail Connect app to make booking smoother for real users.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How many user IDs were deactivated by IRCTC?
IRCTC deactivated 3.03 crore suspicious user IDs and is currently verifying the authenticity of another 6.05 crore accounts.
What is the impact of Aadhaar-based OTP verification?
It is active in 322 trains and has increased the availability of confirm Tatkal tickets by approximately 65%.