Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
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Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#2I can't figure out if it was just "pasting fields into the UI" as they say (in which case how were they caught with traffic monitoring???) or if it was a screen scraper
In any case, he clearly wasn't collecting ticket payments on behalf of the train company, so I don't see how they could accuse him of acting as an unauthorised agent
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#3The headline has been editorialized. While I don't agree with what the authorities did here, and believe the developer was acting in good faith, the developer created an app for buying railway tickets which charged a small fee for the tickets - the issue was that he was arrested for making money off ticket sales, as opposed to "automating forms on a website"
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#4People outside India may not realize the importance of train tickets and how difficult they can be to book. Trains are still the primary mode of transport for long distance travel and some routes get booked out in minutes after reservations open. There have been ticket mafias who mass book tickets and resell them in the black market for a huge profit.
I do appreciate that the developer was solving a genuine need, so kudos to him. But anyone from India could've seen the government's reaction coming a mile away.
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#5I can't figure out if it was just "pasting fields into the UI" as they say (in which case how were they caught with traffic monitoring???) or if it was a screen scraper In any case, he clearly wasn't collecting ticket payments on behalf of the train company, so I don't see how they could accuse him of acting as an unauthorised agent
When you signup for an account for the Indian railways, you are explicitly prohibited from making money off of the service in any form.
This is because there is a black market for railway tickets, where agents charge a high free for booking tickets online for many illetrate buyers, especially in rural areas.
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#6People outside India may not realize the importance of train tickets and how difficult they can be to book. Trains are still the primary mode of transport for long distance travel and some routes get booked out in minutes after reservations open. There have been ticket mafias who mass book tickets and resell them in the black market for a huge profit. I do appreciate that the developer was solving a genuine need, so…
when i visited india, i found the "next generation" booking system to be a bit of a joke, so i don't blame this guy for trying to make it better (whether or not he was profiting).
My favourite part was the "maintenance" window the website would go through every night. Which was never really indicated on the website other than vague messages/errors - but everybody knew that's what it was.
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#7Tatkal tickets are special tickets that are opened two days before date of travel at 9 in morning. These are important tickets as a last chance for some urgent travel because usually trains are full long back. To prevent abuse there are lots of restrictions, including not available on any third party.
It was a lame app that prefilled the form in Railway app and charged money for this feature. This must have triggered some TnC breach. Similar things exist as browser plugin/scripts, but they are free and stay under the radar.
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#8The headline has been editorialized. While I don't agree with what the authorities did here, and believe the developer was acting in good faith, the developer created an app for buying railway tickets which charged a small fee for the tickets - the issue was that he was arrested for making money off ticket sales, as opposed to "automating forms on a website"
Yep. He circumvented rate-limiters that ensured that you couldn't game the booking system. The regulations very clearly prohibit this to ensure fair access.
Now, one can absolutely argue about whether this form of rate limiting is the right approach, but to circumvent something that is clearly prohibited & charge money to do that is illegal.
This does not mean that I think the current system is perfect OR that there aren't other players who also have backdoors into the process; just that the action is not as egregious as 'BUREAUCRATS STIFILING INNOVATION'. There is more nuance needed here [1].
"According to the sources, the apps enabled users to book Tatkal tickets bypassing security checks on the IRCTC portal. His mobile applications were unauthorized and had features to bypasses Completely Automated Public Turing Test (CAPTCHA), a security measure that users must fill in while logging in to IRCTC. As per reports the apps also bypassed other security measures installed by the IRCTC." ... "However, railway officials clarified Yuvrajaa bypassed the railway system and made money illegally which is a crime. He wasn’t event an authorized agent registered with IRCTC to book tickets. RPF has registered a case under section 143 (2) of the Railways Act (penalty for unauthorised carrying on of the business of procuring and supplying of railway tickets).
Developing an unauthorised software bypassing e-ticketing system is an offence. Such applications defeated the purpose of having a first-come-first-serve system and benefit only a few who use the software."
This govt., like most Indian govts, has a stupidly archaic & top-down / low-trust / risk-averse / bean-counter approach to innovation and transparency (case in point, the Covid tracking app Arogya Setu's sordid development & transparency issues), but this specific incident isn't the right stick, IMO. :)
[1] https://www.the420.in/conman-or-genius-arrest-of-iit-kharagp...
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#9Looks like both the railways and the developer have never heard of APIs.
Re: Indian developer jailed for making unauthorized train ticket booking app
#10The headline has been editorialized. While I don't agree with what the authorities did here, and believe the developer was acting in good faith, the developer created an app for buying railway tickets which charged a small fee for the tickets - the issue was that he was arrested for making money off ticket sales, as opposed to "automating forms on a website"
Yep. He circumvented rate-limiters that ensured that you couldn't game the booking system. The regulations very clearly prohibit this to ensure fair access. Now, one can absolutely argue about whether this form of rate limiting is the right approach, but to circumvent something that is clearly prohibited & charge money to do that is illegal. This does not mean that I think the current system is perfect OR that there…
You see similar software used in Auction sites such as eBay and the likes. Are this type of software also banned in India?