Short version: RailCast has no accounts and collects no personal information about you on our servers. The only data that leaves your device is the train number, PNR, station code or journey date you type in — sent so we can fetch your results — and we don't tie it to your identity.
1. Who we are
RailCast ("we", "our", "us") is an independent app that displays Indian Railways information (running status, PNR, seat availability, fares). Contact: hello@railcast.in.
2. What we do not collect
- No account, sign-up or login.
- No name, email, phone or address (unless you email us).
- No precise or background location.
- No contacts, photos, microphone or camera access.
- No advertising identifiers — no ads, no selling or sharing of your data.
3. Information processed to provide the service
When you check a train, PNR, availability or fare, the query you type is sent from the app to our backend over HTTPS, then to a third-party Indian Railways data provider that returns the result. This is limited to your train number, 10-digit PNR (only for PNR status), and station codes / journey date. We don't attach your name, account or device identity to these queries. Our backend may briefly cache the response (seconds to hours, by data type) keyed to the query — not to you.
Third-party data provider: live data is retrieved through the irctc-connect rail-data service (operated by its independent provider). Your query is transmitted there to fetch results; their handling is governed by their own terms, which we do not control. We send only the minimum needed.
4. Stored on your device only
Never transmitted to us:
| What | Why |
|---|---|
| Recent searches, favourites, pinned stations, recent PNRs | Quick re-access |
| Last-known platform for trains you've viewed | Show a sensible platform when the live one is briefly missing |
| Settings (theme, haptics, alerts) | Remember your choices |
| Offline station/train directory | Instant autocomplete |
Clear it any time in Settings → Data, or by uninstalling the app.
5. Notifications
If you enable alerts, RailCast sends local notifications about your tracked train (e.g. delay or platform change). Android 13+ asks for permission. Alerts are optional and can be turned off in Settings or your system settings. Content is generated on your device from data you're already viewing.
6. Analytics, crash reporting & ads
This version includes no third-party analytics, advertising, or profiling SDKs. If we add privacy-respecting crash/analytics later, we'll update this policy and the Play Data-safety section first, and won't use them to identify you.
7. Children
RailCast is a general-audience utility, not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect children's personal information.
8. Security
App ⇄ backend ⇄ provider traffic uses encrypted HTTPS. Our API credentials live only on our server, never in the app. With no personal accounts stored, there's no personal database to breach. No system is perfectly secure, but the footprint is deliberately minimal.
9. Your rights (India DPDP & GDPR)
Because we keep no personal accounts or identifiable data on our servers, there's generally no profile to access, correct, export or delete. You control the only data we keep — on your device — and can clear it in-app or by uninstalling. Questions/requests: hello@railcast.in.
10. Accuracy & honest data
Railway data can be delayed, incomplete or temporarily unavailable. Where it's missing we show a clear "not available" message instead of inventing data. Estimated times are computed from the published schedule plus the train's reported delay and labelled as estimates. For information only — confirm critical details with official Indian Railways/IRCTC sources.
11. Changes
We may update this policy; the "Last updated" date will change and significant changes will be reflected here and in the app.