IRCTC Suspends 6.33 Crore User IDs Over Suspected Ticketing Misuse

The affected users will not be able to book tickets until they complete identity verification.

According to the report, agents create fake user IDs to book large numbers of tickets and later sell them to passengers in need at higher prices.

IRCTC has been taking action against brokers involved in improper ticket bookings since October last year. So far, IRCTC has blocked 16,041 suspicious email domains and filed 592 complaints on the cybercrime portal linked to 4.21 lakh suspicious Passenger Name Record (PNR) numbers.

According to IRCTC, ticket booking begins at 8 am, with the highest number of bookings taking place during the first 15 minutes, reflecting the peak demand during the opening window.

IRCTC said, "All categories of authorised ticketing agents are prohibited from booking Advance Reservation Period (ARP) tickets during the first 10 minutes of the booking window, i.e. from 8 am to 8:10 am. From October 12, 2025, only Aadhaar-authenticated users are permitted to book tickets during the initial ARP window."

IRCTC has also assigned the implementation of anti-bot and Content Delivery Network (CDN) capabilities to a leading technology company. IRCTC said, "Anti-bot technology has resulted in a 55% to 65% reduction in malicious bot traffic in recent months. The implementation of CDN for delivering static content has reduced the load on the New Generation Ticketing (NGeT) system, improving the experience for genuine and verified users."

The action comes as IRCTC recorded its highest-ever single-day ticket booking load this year during the festive season.

IRCTC said on September 11 that more than 20 lakh people booked railway tickets on September 7, making it the highest load recorded on the site in a single day this year. A total of 20,06,353 tickets were booked on September 7 this year, surpassing last year's record.

According to IRCTC, 18,40,203 tickets were booked on August 19, 2025, during last year's festive season.

IRCTC said that around 89% of all reserved tickets are currently booked online, making the integrity and accessibility of the online reservation system increasingly significant for passengers.