There’s nothing quite like watching sports live. The energy, the cheers, the game! But tickets to live sporting events can be pricey, and scammers know this well. They’ve come up with all sorts of scams involving the sale of sport tickets, and often, they succeed at conning innocent victims out of their money. Here’s what you need to know about sport ticket scams and how to avoid them.
In a sport ticket scam, a target searches online for tickets to a live sporting event. An ad appears on screen, offering tickets to this event. When the target clicks on it, they find their way onto the alleged seller’s webpage. They enter their information, choose seats, and then notice that the tickets are ridiculously overpriced. At this point, they’ll either opt-out or decide they really want to go to this event, so a ticket is worth any price to them. They’ll input their credit card info, complete the payment and expect to receive confirmation of the sale. They’ll wait for it to come… and wait… and wait. Unfortunately, the virtual tickets aren’t coming and the victim will never hear from the seller again. To make matters worse, the scammer now has their personal information and credit card details so they can scam them even more.
In another version of the sport ticket scam, the victim receives an e-ticket after completing the transaction. However, this ticket is useless because it is either counterfeit with forged barcodes and logos or a duplicate of an actual ticket that has already been sold to other buyers.
Ticket scams can be challenging to spot because scammers use sophisticated methods to create look-alike sites, bogus tickets and more. Don’t get scammed! Follow these tips to avoid getting caught in a sport ticket scam:
Don’t:
If you believe you’ve been targeted for or become a victim of a sport ticket scam, there are several steps to take to mitigate the damage and help stop the scammers. First, if you’ve paid with a credit card, be sure to dispute the charge, cancel the card and ask for a new one. Next, report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). You can also file a complaint against the bogus ticket company through the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Scam Tracker. Finally, let your family and friends know about the circulating scam.
Don’t let a live sporting event go foul! Stay alert and stay safe.