The IRCTC is offering passengers the option to opt out of digital data monetisation plan, The Economic Times reported on August 23 quoting sources, adding that the said activity would strictly stay within "the confines of the law."
The move comes after privacy experts expressed their concerns regarding IRCTC's Expression of Interest (EoI) in hiring a consultant to explore avenues for monetising passenger data.
Also Read | Experts raise data privacy concerns as IRCTC moves to monetise passenger data
However, India does not have a standalone data privacy law. The Data Privacy Bill that was introduced in 2019, was withdrawn in the monsoon session of the Parliament. The government said that it would be re-introduced after making the necessary changes.
Also Read | Your name, address, password, etc. will be shared by IRCTC to monetise passenger data
According to officials aware of the discussions, EY and KPMG have already shown willingness to be appointed as a consultant to IRCTC.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.
KPMG declined to comment on company-specific matters, while EY did not respond to ET's queries until press time, according to the report.
"A final decision on the way ahead for data monetisation will be taken at a much later stage. The goal of the consultant is just to help us figure out what are the organizations that can help us in getting things done," an official told ET.
As part of the plan, BSNL may be brought in to communicate with targeted audiences in the future, the official added.
Reportedly, another official clarified that monetising 'digital assets' does not include storing the name of the passenger, the Aadhaar number, the address of the residence, or any other details of their bank accounts.
There could just be a number of passengers who travel on a particular train, how many choose the catering option, etc. Because of this, concerns about privacy infringements are unfounded, he said, as quoted by ET.
"It is an Expression of Interest, it is not a tender. It is just a preliminary thing, where IRCTC has sought interest from prospective consultants wherein they would suggest the measures which IRCTC or Indian Railways can take to monetise their digital assets," the official said.
The Expression of Interest stage comes before floating a tender. It helps companies assess the availability of the service or goods providers and modify the prospective tenders as per the response.
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