Tickets sold on social media

Most tickets now live in an app, and they move from one person’s account to another’s inside that app. Until they’re in your own account, you haven’t bought anything.

If it’s happening now

A friend posted that they’re selling tickets. Call them on the number in your phone, not in Messenger, Instagram, or the comments. If they didn’t post it, someone has taken over their account. Tell them, and report the post. What they should do next: Someone got into my account.

A stranger wants to be paid first. Say you’ll pay when the tickets are in your account in the official app. If they won’t send first, don’t buy.

They sent a screenshot, a screen recording, or a PDF as proof. That’s not proof. The same screenshot can go to every buyer, and the FTC warns about one seat sold many times. Ticketmaster says a screenshot won’t get you in. Ask for the transfer instead.

They want Zelle, Cash App, a gift card, crypto, a wire, or Venmo or PayPal “friends and family.” Don’t pay that way. Those are the payments least likely to come back. Offer PayPal goods and services, or Venmo marked as a purchase, after the tickets are in your account. If they say no, walk away. Venmo’s own rules say that paying someone you don’t personally know for concert tickets has to be marked as a purchase.

They asked for a code that just came to your phone. Don’t send it. It can let them into one of your accounts, or set up a phone number tied to yours that they use on other people. The FTC says anyone who asks for it is a scammer. Already sent it: I gave out a code, password, or card number.

What to say

• Hey, it's me. Did you post that you're selling tickets for Saturday? I want to check it's really you before I send money.

• I'll pay as soon as they're in my account. If someone else pays first, that's fine.

• I paid for tickets that never came. I want to dispute the charge as a billing error, and I'll send it in writing too. Can I get a case number? What address do I send the written dispute to?

• I sent this payment for tickets that didn't exist. Can you try to reverse it, and does it qualify for any scam reimbursement? I need a case number.

• Can you send me that decision in writing?

If something already left your hands

Stop replying, and don’t send more to “release” the tickets or cover a “fee.” Don’t block them yet. Call about the money first, using the steps below. Ask for a case number every time.

Credit card. Call the number on the back and ask to dispute it as a billing error: you paid for tickets that never came, or didn’t work. Then put it in writing, to the billing-inquiries address (not the payment address), so it arrives within 60 days of the statement that first showed the charge. Steps: I paid with a credit or debit card.

Debit card. Call the bank. On debit, the law doesn’t promise a refund for something you paid for and didn’t get. Ask anyway.

PayPal sent as goods and services, or Venmo marked as a purchase. Open a dispute in the app now. For tickets that never came, both allow up to 180 days from the day you paid. For tickets that came and didn’t work, PayPal allows 30 days from delivery. On PayPal, if the seller doesn’t fix it, turn the dispute into a claim within 20 days, or PayPal closes it. Steps: I paid with Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, or Apple Cash.

Zelle, Cash App, Apple Cash, or “friends and family.” Report it in the app, or to your bank for Zelle. A payment you sent yourself is usually treated as authorized and often isn’t paid back. Ask for a reversal anyway, and ask whether Zelle’s impostor-scam reimbursement covers it. Zelle says only certain impostor scams qualify and doesn’t say which, so don’t count on it. If the answer is no, get it in writing and file a complaint with the CFPB. Steps: Zelle, Cash App or Apple Cash.

Gift card, crypto, or wire. For a gift card, call the company that issued it today. For a wire, call your bank and ask it to recall the wire. For a wire or crypto, also file at ic3.gov at the same time. Steps: gift cards, wire, crypto.

You typed your password into a page they sent. Change it from a device you trust, and use a passkey or an authenticator app for sign-in if the account offers one. More: I gave out a code, password, or card number.

You typed your card number into a site they sent. Call the number on the card, report it, and ask for a new card. Charges you didn’t make: on a credit card, dispute within 60 days of the statement that shows them. On a debit card, report today. What you can owe rises the longer you wait. More: I paid with a credit or debit card.

Then:

1. Screenshot the post, the profile, and the messages, and save the payment receipt. Save evidence without spiraling.
2. Report the post and the profile on Facebook or Instagram. If it was a friend’s account, tell them by phone.
3. Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and ic3.gov.

Anyone who offers to get the money back for a fee is running a second scam, including people who say they’re from the FBI, IC3, the FTC, or a law firm. Someone offers to get my money back.

What it looks like

Your cousin Dana posted on Facebook an hour ago: two tickets for Saturday's show, she can't go, $180 for both. You commented. Now she's messaging you.

Facebook Messenger Dana Whitley

Today 7:48 PM

hey!! yes they're yours if you want them

section 104 row F, seats 7 and 8. $180 for both, that's what I paid

what happened? thought you were going

work moved my shift, I'm so annoyed

I'll transfer them on Ticketmaster as soon as the payment goes through

Zelle or Venmo is fine. if Venmo send as friends so they don't hold it

someone from work wants them too but I'd rather they go to family

It's Dana's real account, with years of her photos on it. What do you do?

• Pay with Zelle. It's family, and the tickets come right after
• Ask something only Dana would know, like the name of her first dog
• Call Dana on the number in your phone and ask about the tickets

Show the answers

• Wrong move Pay with Zelle. It's family, and the tickets come right after Her account is real. The person typing may not be. The FTC says a friend's account may have been hacked, and to call them to check. A Zelle payment you sent yourself is often treated as authorized, and the bank may not pay it back.
• Wrong move Ask something only Dana would know, like the name of her first dog Whoever has her account can scroll years of her posts, photos, and old messages, which is where answers like that usually are. A right answer proves nothing.
• Best move Call Dana on the number in your phone and ask about the tickets The FTC's advice for a money request from a friend's account is to call them to check. If she's selling them, you've lost a minute. If she isn't, you've just told her that someone took over her account.

A friend's real account doesn't mean your friend is typing. Check on the number you already have before any money moves.

You found two tickets for Thursday's game in a Facebook fan group. The seller agreed to send them before you pay. An email from Ticketmaster just arrived: Tyler Brooks sent you 2 tickets.

Facebook Messenger Tyler Brooks

Today 12:16 PM

Just sent them, check your email

Sec 212 row 9, seats 3 and 4. Says sent on my end

Got the email. Haven't accepted yet

Ok I held up my end. Send the $240 now please

PayPal goods and services is fine, I just need it before I leave for work

The email really did come from Ticketmaster. What do you do?

• Pay now. He sent them first, like you agreed
• Pay now with PayPal goods and services. That's the protected way
• Accept the transfer, open the Ticketmaster app yourself, and pay once the tickets are under My Tickets

Show the answers

• Wrong move Pay now. He sent them first, like you agreed Ticketmaster lets the sender cancel a transfer until it's accepted, and the tickets go back to his account. Until you accept, he can pull them back, or send the same seats to someone else.
• Wrong move Pay now with PayPal goods and services. That's the protected way Protected on paper. But he can still cancel the transfer after you pay, and then you're arguing a dispute instead of holding tickets.
• Best move Accept the transfer, open the Ticketmaster app yourself, and pay once the tickets are under My Tickets Once you accept, he can't cancel it. Ticketmaster gives you a new barcode, and his copy stops working. Then pay with PayPal goods and services.

A transfer can be canceled until you accept it. Accept it, find the tickets in your own account, then pay.

A seller on Instagram has two tickets for a concert in three weeks. You asked her to transfer them before you pay.

Instagram Kaylee

Today 9:02 PM

I would but I literally can't yet

Ticketmaster doesn't release the barcodes until 72 hours before the show. you can look it up

I'll send them the second they unlock. just need payment now to hold them, I've had like 6 people ask

PayPal friends and family please, I don't want PayPal holding it for 3 weeks

Some tickets really don't show up until a few days before the show. What do you do?

• Pay now as friends and family. What she said about the barcodes is true
• Pay now, but send it as goods and services
• Tell her you'll pay when the tickets are in your account, even if that's three days before

Show the answers

• Wrong move Pay now as friends and family. What she said about the barcodes is true Ticketmaster does say barcodes for some events show up about three days before. That's why the excuse works. A payment sent as friends and family isn't covered by PayPal's Purchase Protection.
• Okay Pay now, but send it as goods and services Better. If nothing arrives, you can open a dispute within 180 days of paying. But you wouldn't find out until about three days before the show, and then you're waiting on a dispute instead of holding tickets.
• Best move Tell her you'll pay when the tickets are in your account, even if that's three days before If the tickets are real, they'll still be real in three weeks. The most waiting can cost you is these seats, if she sells them to someone else.

An excuse can be true and still be no reason to pay early. Pay when the tickets are in your account.

What they’ll ask for

“I’ll transfer them as soon as the money comes through.” Ask them to send first. Pay once you’ve accepted and the tickets are under My Tickets in your own account.

“Send it as friends and family so the app doesn’t hold it.” A purchase sent that way has no Purchase Protection on Venmo or PayPal. That’s why they ask.

“They’re not out yet. Ticketmaster releases them three days before.” That can be true: Ticketmaster says barcodes for some events show up about three days before. It’s a reason to pay later, not sooner.

“Transfer is turned off for this show, so I’ll give you my login.” Ticketmaster says an artist or venue can turn transfer off. Then there’s no safe way to buy those tickets from a person. Whoever still has the login can move them after you pay.

“Ticketmaster charges a transfer fee. Send $35 to cover it.” Ticketmaster says it doesn’t charge a fee to transfer tickets.

“Tap this link to accept your tickets.” Ticketmaster sends real transfers itself, by email, text, or WhatsApp. A link pasted into the chat can lead to a fake sign-in page. However you accept, open the app yourself and find the tickets before you pay.

“Someone else wants them. Pay now and they’re yours.” Let the other person have them.

What not to waste time on

Working out whether the seller is real. A photo of their driver’s license, “vouches” in the group, an old profile, friends in common: none of it tells you the tickets exist. Tickets in your own account are the only check that counts.

Where to buy instead

• Start at the artist’s, team’s, or venue’s own website and follow its ticket link. If you search for it, skip anything marked “Sponsored”. The FTC and FBI both warn that scam sites pay for those spots.
• Sold out? Look for official resale on the same site or app. Other resale sites aren’t official, but many are real. Before you buy, the FTC says to check how and when they deliver and what happens if the tickets don’t work.
• Pay with a credit card. If the tickets never come, it gives you the most ways to get your money back.
• Buying from a person, even one you know: pay after the tickets are in your account. Ticketmaster’s advice is to know and trust anyone who transfers tickets to you.