Ticket resale scams and how to avoid them: what to check before you pay, and how to report

Chochim editorial team · October 19, 2026

When you can't get tickets for a popular show or a postseason game, you start looking for resale posts on social media and second-hand apps. That's exactly the moment scammers wait for. The feeling that "it's now or never" makes it easy to agree to requests you'd normally question.

The safest options are official ticketing sites, official returns and box office sales. If you still need to buy from an individual, read the tactics and checks below first.

Common scam tactics

1. Fake escrow payment pages

The seller suggests "let's use a safe payment service" and sends a link. It looks exactly like a real payment escrow service but is a fake page the scammer made. If the account holder for the transfer is an individual's name rather than the payment company, or the service name is subtly different, suspect a fake.

2. "The fee didn't go through": endless extra payments

Once you send money, they ask for more: "the fee wasn't paid," "the sender name was wrong," "you need to match the amount to get a refund." They reassure you that earlier payments will be refunded automatically, but nothing ever comes back. Losses of tens of millions of won from this tactic have been reported.

3. Account-transfer scams

Using the excuse of handing over a whole booking account, they ask for your name, phone number and verification code. They then use that information to make small payments in your name, buying things like gift cards. Assume the damage starts the moment you share a verification code with the other party.

4. Selling one ticket to many people, or fake booking screens

Booking screens are easy to fake or borrow from someone else. Some scammers show the same ticket photo to several people and take money from each.

Check these before you send money

• Look up scam history: enter the seller's phone and account numbers into a fraud lookup service such as The Cheat or the Korean National Police Agency's Cyber Cop app. Some bank apps also have a suspicious-account check on the transfer screen.
• Check the seller's account: be suspicious of newly created accounts, or old accounts with only recent posts. Searching their nickname, account holder name and account number together with the word "scam" (사기) on social media also helps.
• Ask for a fresh verification photo: ask them to photograph the booking or physical ticket next to a note with today's date and a phrase you choose. This weeds out scams using someone else's photos.
• Never share personal details or verification codes: a legitimate transfer doesn't need your verification code.
• Go to the payment service directly, not through the seller's link: if you use escrow, open that service's app or website yourself instead of clicking a link.

Paying above face value is risky too

If you've been scammed

1. Collect evidence first. Screenshot the conversation, the seller's contact details, nickname and account number, and download a transfer confirmation from your bank app.
2. Report it to the police. You can report online through the Korean National Police Agency's Electronic Cybercrime Report Management System (ECRM, ecrm.police.go.kr). An online report is only a provisional filing, so follow the instructions to file formally at a police station within the deadline. Dial 182 (no area code) to find the nearest station.
3. Register the case. Adding it to The Cheat or Cyber Cop helps protect others.

Unlike voice phishing, it's hard to ask a bank to freeze the scammer's account directly for second-hand deals like ticket resales. Action goes through the police, so report quickly.

Better: get tickets through official channels

• Returned tickets: they appear right after bank-transfer deadlines, just before cancellation fees change, and the day before the show. Details are in Concert ticketing, start to finish.
• KBO postseason: returns are sold at the stadium box office from two hours before the first pitch. See the playoff ticket guide.
• Try the on-the-hour sale again: clicking in time with the server clock improves your odds. Check ticketing server time on Chochim.

Sources (in Korean)

• KB Think: ticket and account-transfer scams and how to report them
• Kyongbuk Maeil: changes to the anti-scalping law
• MTN: one month of the anti-scalping law