Ticket Scams: How to Spot the Red Flags

After the pandemic, people have been eager to attend concerts of their favorite artists and events in their areas of interest. Scammers are taking advantage of this behavior by selling fake tickets to major events or advertising events that do not exist.

The Olympic Games in Paris 2024 will start in a few days. You may have planned to watch your favorite athletes or your family members compete for their gold medal dream. Unfortunately, with this current event happening, some have already been victims of the Ticket Scam.

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One of those is the family of British Olympian Matt Richards. On a swimming news and media website, Swimswam, it was reported that Richard’s mother told the BBC that the family had been scammed of 2,500 pounds ($3,170.50) by a ticket website that “looked perfectly legitimate.”

Let’s dig deeper and explore how the ticket scam works to avoid them in the future, especially if you have plans to buy tickets for your favorite events this year.

How Ticket Scams Work

Scammers often target victims by offering tickets to major events at discounted prices. They also offer tickets at inflated prices to events that have already sold out a few days before the event.

Scammers cast their net through fake websites, social media posts, or emails. Most ticket scams begin with a post on social media where scammers say they can’t attend the event because something urgent and unexpected came up. Once you confirm you want that ticket, you’re asked to pay via an alternative money transfer service.

Sometimes, victims are directed to a fake ticket website and asked to pay upfront. They are prompted to enter their bank details to buy those coveted ticket

Once you make the payment, the scammers disappear.

The main problem with these websites is that you risk getting scammed twice, similar to recovery scams. You get scammed once when paying for a ticket to an event that is either already sold out or, worse, doesn’t exist. Then, scammers often save your credit card or bank account information to make unauthorized withdrawals.

The bad news is these false ticket websites seem legitimate. They often copy the design of genuine ticket platforms pixel by pixel.

As the date of a major event approaches, people are more likely to fall victim to ticket scams. That’s why you should know how these scams work and what red flags to watch for.

Ticket scams come in different variations. Here are the most frequent ones.

Ticket Scam Variations

Facebook Group & Marketplace Scams

The majority of ticket scams start with fake ads or posts on Facebook, including Facebook Marketplace. Lloyds Banking Group statistics confirm this.

Another common scenario is when you’re invited to join a so-called verified resale group on Facebook. Needless to say, these groups are set up by scammers to attract victims.

They have seemingly real interactions and many members, making them seem legitimate. After joining the group, victims are often asked to contact the admin for more ticket details.

Scammers disguised as group admins promise victims they’ll mediate between them and the ticket seller. In other words, they claim they’ll get the tickets before the seller receives the payment, making victims feel safe.

Victims tend to trust the group admins because of their role, but anyone can create such groups, so be cautious.

To make matters worse, scammers often hack real people’s social media profiles and use them to spread scams. When contacted via an established Facebook profile, even one with mutual friends, the scam becomes more convincing.

Ticketmaster Scam

Ticketmaster is a popular platform where you can buy tickets for concerts, sports events, and other live entertainment events. Unfortunately, Ticketmaster is also a popular target for scammers.

Scammers may claim to be Ticketmaster agents, informing you that only a few tickets are left for an upcoming major event or that there is a time-limited deal for a particular event. They will ask you to pay via wire transfer or gift cards.

Keep in mind that Ticketmaster doesn’t sell tickets through third-party platforms like social media networks. The platform will never ask you to buy third-party gift cards as a form of payment.

In a different version, scammers list tickets on hacked social media accounts and even provide video proof of the ticket on their Ticketmaster account. But when the victim sends the money, either the account gets suspended or the scammer no longer responds.

StubHub Ticket Scams

While StubHub is a reputable ticket platform, it’s not immune to scam attempts. The platform verifies ticket authenticity, but there is still a risk of buying counterfeit tickets if you’re not careful. The risk is higher since the platform resells tickets to live events.

Individuals can list their tickets for sale on StubHub, and sometimes scammers manage to go undetected.

Scammers often use static QR codes to sell counterfeit tickets. Victims typically realize they’ve purchased fake tickets only when they try to enter the event venue.

A fake StubHub ticket typically has a very low price. Scammers might list the same tickets multiple times, selling the same tickets to different buyers. Only the first buyer to arrive at the venue will have a valid ticket, the others will be denied entry.

The good news is that if a ticket has an issue, StubHub will give you a new ticket or a full refund.

How to Spot the Red Flags

Tickets Still Available Shortly Before the Event

Tickets for popular events, such as the Olympics, often disappear within hours or days of becoming available for sale. If you suddenly find tickets to events that have long been sold out, this should be a major red flag.

Check the official website of the respective event to see if there are any available tickets. If the website confirms that the event has been sold out, those “still available” tickets are likely scams.

Sense of Urgency

Creating a sense of urgency is one of the most common and, unfortunately, efficient strategies that scammers use. Fraudsters want you to let your emotions take over and rush into buying tickets without checking whether they’re real. When you’re excited about getting a ticket, it’s easy to miss the clues that you’re dealing with a scammer.

Scammers often use pressure tactics, claiming that “someone else wants to buy the ticket right now.” It’s usually too late when you realize everything has been a scam.

Bank Transfer or PayPal Payments

If the seller asks you to pay by bank transfer or PayPal, especially if you found them on social media, that should be a major red flag. Scammers prefer these payment methods because they are not 100% secure. If something goes wrong with a bank transfer, it’s difficult to recover your money.

Fraudulent websites often display fake error messages claiming there was a problem with the payment. You might be prompted to pay again, being charged twice for counterfeit tickets.

Always pay with a credit card or debit card for better protection. If you use PayPal, select “Paying for an item or service” instead of “Friends and Family.” This ensures PayPal’s Purchase Protection covers you.

How to Avoid Falling Victim to This Scam

Check if the Event Is Already Sold Out

Ticket scams are likely to increase in frequency before the year’s biggest events. Scammers often ramp up their efforts weeks and even days before the event.

If an event is already sold out, be cautious of anyone claiming to have tickets available, especially on social media or unofficial sites. Be extra wary of anyone offering tickets at a discounted price. That almost screams out loud, “It’s a scam!”

Ask for Proof of Purchase

Ask the seller for their original purchase confirmation. A legitimate seller will have a confirmation email they can show you. Compare your ticket details with those on the official event or venue website. Any differences should be a warning sign.

If necessary, you may also ask the seller to show proof that the email is accompanied by emails from the ticketing platform’s legitimate email addresses. Emails from personal or non-official addresses (like Gmail, Outlook, or Yahoo) are a red flag for scams.

Buy Tickets from Reputable Platforms

Always buy tickets from reputable platforms to ensure you’re getting a genuine ticket. Pay by debit or credit card and avoid alternative payment methods.

Double-check the URL of the ticket platform you are using. Scammers can create fake websites that look almost identical to real ones by changing just a few letters in the web address.

This tricks people into thinking they’re on the real site when they’re not.

By the way, you can use Scam Detector’s Validator tool to check if a website is safe.

Social media is not always reliable. Scammers can easily create fake ads with pictures of tickets they don’t have. It might be tempting to click on a ticket offer on social media, but there’s no guarantee it’s real.

If you’re still determined to buy that ticket, do yourself a favor and check the seller’s social media profile. If they have a relatively new profile with very few friends, followers, and posts, that should raise concerns.

Don’t engage with sellers who say “DM me” and disable comments. Scammers do this to have private conversations with as many potential victims as possible through direct messages.

Verify Tickets Using their Customer Support

You can contact the ticketing platform’s customer support or virtual assistant to verify the ticket. They may also be able to confirm its authenticity and provide tips on how to spot fake tickets.

Use Common Sense

If the tickets are priced much lower than usual, be cautious. Take your time, and don’t rush into buying, especially if you feel something isn’t right. Buying tickets from a trusted platform is safer, even if it costs more, to avoid losing money.

To ensure the ticket you’re about to purchase is genuine, ask the seller to take a quick photo of it next to a piece of paper with specific text written on it. If the seller hesitates to do this, do not proceed with the transaction.

→ Quick Tips

Don’t post photos of your ticket online. Scammers can use that image to create fake tickets. They can copy the ticket’s details and design to make their counterfeit tickets look real.

Conclusion

Ticket scams can be costly and stressful. Always buy tickets from trusted sources and be wary of deals that seem too good to be true. Taking a few extra steps to verify the ticket’s authenticity can save you from falling victim to these scams.

How to Report Scammers

Contact your bank immediately if you’ve transferred money to a scammer. If you’re lucky enough, they may be able to stop the payment.

Share this article to warn your family and friends about this scam to prevent them from falling victim.

You can report scammers and any suspicious activity to the Federal Trade, and the FBI Internet Complaint Center by using the pages below:

• Report to the FTC
• Report to the FBI Internet Complaints Center

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Feel free to explore additional articles on related fraud. Last but not least, if you had any bad experiences, make sure to use the comments section below to expose the scammers!