SA introduces measures to alleviate ticket fraud

Ticketing companies are stepping up their security measures to ensure that consumers are protected and not taken advantage of by unscrupulous 'ticket' sellers.

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Trustworthy source

"Trust is the number one factor for customers when buying tickets online," says Christy Turner, co-founder of Webtickets, "Tickets to specific events can be pricey and event-goers want to know that they are dealing with a reliable and trustworthy company when making their purchase."

One of the measures being introduced to alleviate ticket fraud includes requiring event-goers to pre-register for larger events. Following internationally aligned ticketing practices, large events will require visitors to pre-register online, using their ID numbers and they will be limited to purchasing only a specific number of tickets to prevent ticket scalping, where dishonest vendors buy tickets en masse and sell them on at exorbitant prices.

Selling purchased tickets

Another measure that has been introduced is a secure way of transferring your tickets to another interested party. If you have purchased your ticket to an event through an official and trusted ticketing agency, you will be able to sell your ticket on to another person in a safe way.

"We have introduced an easy 5-step ticket transfer process to allow people to sell their ticket to a new buyer safely and securely. Research shows that one in ten people have been victims of an online ticket scam so it is very important to ensure that you have all the information available before you transfer money to someone for tickets that might not even exist."

Biometrics system

Ticketing security can also work the other way around. "Several companies use a biometrics system that is integrated into their existing ticketing schemes to control access to their sites or venues. In this way, they can be sure of who is gaining access from an internal perspective and manage security more effectively.

"We are in the process of working in close collaboration with some of South Africa's top tourism sites such as the Robben Island Museum, to introduce biometrics into their ticketing systems. Once implemented, fingerprint access will only allow entry to the premises to official employees and approved contractors. This type of biometric access control system has been used for some time at world-class sites, such as Walt Disney World in the USA," concludes Turner.