Train in criticism: Austerity prices disadvantage non-digitized travelers!

Von WOM

In a remarkable advance, the Hessian state data protection officer Alexander Roßnagel sharply criticized the regulations of Deutsche Bahn for the acquisition of savings price tickets. These ticket offers are the focus of the data protection officers, as they personally queries identifiable information when buying that can be problematic for many customers.

Roßnagel expressed his concerns that people are disadvantaged without access to smartphones or computers. This situation is considered particularly critically, since the railway almost exclusively uses an online platform for ticket purchase. Those who value data protection or are not up to digital life also feel excluded. "People without a smartphone or computer is blocked to make discounts," said Roßnagel. This shows how serious the problem is.

Criticism of exclusive online sales

The fact that even when buying at the switch, where tickets can be printed out, is also required is required to submit an email address or mobile phone number. This increases the barrier enormously for people without such digital identifiers, which rates Roßnagel as irresponsible. "The digitization strategy of the railway is not very considerate of people who are data protection -conscious or little technology -savvy," he criticized.

Deutsche Bahn relies on the high use of their online offers, with more than 90 percent of travelers use this platform. Conversely, this means that millions of passengers are excluded from this convenience. Roßnagel emphasizes that the railway as a quasi monopolistic size in German rail traffic also has a responsibility towards the general public. "Since the company has a monopoly in train traffic in Germany, it is responsible for the common good," says Roßnagel.

When buying online, travelers must provide a lot of personal data, including a mobile phone number or an email address. Theoretically, these could be used to individualize a ticket to prevent illegal resale; However, there are also alternative solutions that would make such a data collection superfluous. "As a data protection supervisory authority, we are not opponents of digitization," said Roßnagel. "However, we turn against unnecessary compulsion to disclose data." The criticism is therefore not against digitization itself, but against the way it is implemented.

In addition, Roßnagel clarifies: "The compulsory collection of email address or smartphone number is inadmissible under data protection law." According to his assessment, the train collects more data than would be required to carry out the ticket purchase.

The reaction of Deutsche Bahn to these allegations was defensive. A spokeswoman for the company made it clear that the contact details of the travelers were necessary in order to be able to inform them about possible changes during their trip, for example about changing tracks or delays. "We would like to inform our travelers when making changes. To do this, we have to be able to reach customers and therefore need contact," she explained. This data would only be used for the transmission of tickets and travel information.

Further developments must be seen and it remains to be seen how the train will react to the effectiveness of its digitization strategy. Consultants in the travel centers and telephone customer service are prepared to offer the travelers support in order to make the transition to the digital world as smoothly as possible.

Now the question remains how these controversies will develop and whether the railway will be ready to rethink their strategy in order to meet the needs of all customers. The discussion about data protection and digital inclusion is by no means complete. More about the background of this discussion can be found in a current article here .