China Railway reports record passenger numbers and blocks 1.33 million fraudulent tickets

China Railway reported that from January to August this year, the national railway system transported 3.32 billion passengers, a 3.9% year-on-year increase that marks a record high for the same period.

To ensure fairness during the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday travel rush, the 12306 ticketing platform has been actively combating malicious ticket-grabbing activities. Since ticket sales for the holiday period began on September 23, the system has identified and blocked 1.33 million fraudulent ticket issuances.

Authorities are using big data and risk control technologies to target 'technical scalpers' who use scripts and forged devices to bypass normal booking processes. The system has placed 7.117 million suspicious transactions into a slow queue and rejected 1.023 million transactions to prevent unfair advantages. Officials have warned passengers against using third-party 'speed-up' services, noting that the railway department does not partner with such platforms and that these services often lead to unnecessary costs and personal information leaks.