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Sidney Leng

China Railway has adopted a new verification system for booking tickets on its website, but the tricky questioning process has flummoxed most users, Chinese media reports.
After logging in their username and password, would-be travellers are presented with rows of images and must correctly match one with a listed word, according to the news website ThePaper.cn.
For example, which of the following shows a roasted duck (choose all):

But on many occasions, users are given multiple words. For instance, which of the following pictures depicts a salad or a sleeping bag (choose all)?

Confused? You are not alone. “The verification code ... has beaten out 99 per cent of its users,” one person commented online.
Another person asked: “How much did the railway company spend on this ... platform. It doesn’t work. Call Jack Ma. Use his Aliyun system. I support Boss Ma purchasing the railway company,” another wrote on Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, referring to the Alibaba founder.
The rail operator switched to the new verification in an attempt to block scalpers who snap up quantities of tickets and resell them at inflated prices.
But given there can be several right answers – combined with the low-pixel, fuzzy images – getting past the code comes down more to luck than ability.
Frustrated users can try to refresh the page in the hopes of getting an easier code but that can lead to a page that says: “You refresh the page too frequently. Please try later.”
If you do get the right answer, the seat is often gone by then, according to the report.
As they often do, mainlanders have responded to the frustrations of the systemic snafus with sardonic humour. On Weibo, they have posted their own verification code, which of course, doesn’t have a right answer, asking: Who’s the most handsome guy?

If you want to test your wits against the rail operator and can read Chinese, head to 12306.cn. Or maybe just book a flight instead.


Which of the following images shows a roasted duck? China Railway baffles online ticket buyers with impossible verification step

(140816) -- XIGAZE, Aug. 16, 2014 (Xinhua) -- The first passenger train from Lhasa to Xigaze arrives in Xigaze Railway Station, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Aug. 16, 2014. A second railway line in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, which is 251 kilometers long and links the regional capital Lhasa and Xigaze, the second-largest city in the region, was officially put into use. (Xinhua/Liu Kun) (lfj)

Going nowhere fast. China Railway switched to a new verification system to deter scalpers who buy up blocks of tickets, but regular users are stumped by the illogical questions. Above, a passenger train in Xigaze, Tibet. Photo: Xinhua

News

China

People & Culture

Frustrated users rolled out their own suggestions: which image shows the most handsome man? David Beckham or Leonardo Dicaprio?


Which of the following images shows a roasted duck? China Railway baffles online ticket buyers with impossible verification step

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Frustrated users rolled out their own suggestions: which image shows the most handsome man? David Beckham or Leonardo Dicaprio?

Frustrated users rolled out their own suggestions: which image shows the most handsome man? David Beckham or Leonardo Dicaprio?