What to do if scammers steal tickets from your Ticketmaster account

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Billy Joel fans are waking up in a Central New York state of mind. The countdown is on until tickets to the spring show with Sting go on sale.

But whether you’re trying to score seats to see the Piano Man, or tickets to other major JMA Dome shows, we have troubling news for concertgoers.

Imagine saving up to buy tickets to a concert like Pink, Metallica, or Billy Joel, you log into your Ticketmaster account to access your tickets and poof , they’re gone.

These alarming accounts of ticket fraud are being reported across the country and right here at home.

One Central New York man tells NewsChannel 9: “I purchased $900 Metallica tickets for April here and they were fraudulently transferred.”

Another woman posted on Facebook: “This morning we woke up to a h@cked t!Cketm@ster account and our t!!Ckets have been taken.”

Ticketmaster is now taking center stage to address the issue. A spokesperson told NewsChannel 9 that scammers are accessing fans email accounts.

This all came on the heels of a major data breach the company announced earlier this year. But the spokesperson said customers passwords were not exposed during that breach — emphasizing that these incidents do not involve a hack of Ticketmaster systems.

The company’s best advice for customers: Create strong and unique password for all your accounts — especially your personal email — which is often the starting point for security breaches.

Meanwhile, one Central New York woman tells NewsChannel 9 after calling Ticketmaster’s fraud department (1-888-731-4111) multiple times, she was able to get a refund.

Others we talked with are still going through the process, trying to get their money or tickets back.

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