The Railway Protection Force (RPF) of the South Western Railway (SWR) has busted a cross-border criminal network involved in booking railway tickets through an illegal software, and extorting higher fare from passengers.
In September last year, the intelligence agencies alerted about the use of an illegal software for bypassing the IRCTC and bank security systems deployed in booking Tatkal tickets throughout India. After multiple raids by SWR Railway Protection Force sleuths, a suspect was arrested in Bengaluru. He provided the lead about the mastermind of illegal software business who deployed a software to bypass the IRCTC Tatkal system and even bank OTP. The RPF team arrested him at Kendrapara in Odisha in January
2020.
During the interrogation, it came to light that he was having Pakistan-based softwares for hacking device applications of Isro, Railways, and other government organisations.
The investigation unearthed a network of around 25,000 hackers and touts.
The touts brought demand to sellers, who would use the hacking codes for gaining access to the system for booking Tatkal tickets. Panel developers would give sellers the access to the software on monthly charges. These panel developers report to financial and technical administrators whose main job was to maintain the servers hosted in foreign countries.
Illegal money generated is suspected to be used in terror funding, making illegal documents for hostile foreign nations, money laundering through crypto currency, and other crimes.
More than 100 panel developers and software sellers were arrested during the nationwide raids.
Director General of the RPF has awarded a commendation certificate to SWR principal chief security commissioner and Bengaluru divisional security commissioner for the persistent work to apprehend the touts.