The risks of people being scammed regarding the World Cup are so great that Symantec has set up a site specifically to highlight and keep people updated on these scams:
http://2010netthreat.com
There's more information in an article from the Times Online, here:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/money/ ... 042889.ece
February 27, 2010
Football fans under attack from World Cup fraudsters
From tickets to travel, take extra care if you are planning to go to this summer’s finals in South Africa
Mark Bridge Recommend? Football fans and their families are being targeted by a range of scams and rip-offs in the run-up to the World Cup in South Africa this summer, a Times Money investigation has found.
With big screens being put up for ticketless fans, the certainty of a party atmosphere and breathtaking landscapes to explore, many fans are thinking of heading south this summer. However, those looking to book a last-minute trip to the competition have been warned to watch out for fraudsters and check that they are not paying over the odds.
Thousands of tickets being sold on listings and auction websites, including Gumtree, are either fake or will be invalid at the turnstiles.
The only way to buy legitimate tickets is through Fifa at Fifa.com or as part of a travel package offered by a Fifa-approved tour operator. Alex Stone, of Fifa, says that tickets for England’s group matches have already sold out, as have the semi-finals and finals.
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Although allocated, no tickets will be issued until a few weeks before the event, so many of the tickets being sold online are likely to be forgeries. If they are official, they will be printed with the original buyers’ names, which means that anyone who picks them up on the web could be turned away at the stadium.
Fifa says that returns on sold-out matches will be resold, but not until the final phase of sales, starting on April 15. Tickets are still available from Fifa for most other games and are being sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Seats for group matches cost $80 (£52) to $160, with prices for the quarter-finals starting at $150.
Tickets are also being sold on unauthorised websites, such as the Dutch site worldticketshop.com (a top hit on a Google search for “England World Cup tickets 2010”), which is offering £52 England v Slovenia tickets for £292.50 and £104 tickets for £508.50. Again, even if genuine, these tickets cannot have been allocated in the name of any new buyer.
Phoney-ticket sales are not the only scam. The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) has warned that fraudsters are posting advertisements for property rentals on unvetted listings websites, soliciting deposits from overseas fans and then disappearing without trace.
Pat Cunningham, of SAFPS, says: “We have one particular individual who has used more than six different names and e-mail addresses to solicit advance deposits. The same photograph of a property in Camps Bay, Cape Town, was used every time.”
Meanwhile, Symantec, the internet security company, says that the threat to internet users from World Cup-themed scams is so significant that it has created a website at 2010netthreat.com to highlight them. Most are advance-fee fraud e-mails, stating that the recipient has won a World Cup lottery draw, tickets to the opening ceremony or similar. Recipients who respond are asked to pay an “admin fee”, but the prize does not exist.
More convincing variants target fans looking for hotels. Paul Wood, of Symantec, says: “One e-mail offers recipients the chance to book cheap accommodation with the incentive of free match tickets to the first 50 takers. On replying, the scammers would request a large deposit and make a false booking. This could be disastrous, as the victim might pay for flights on the basis that the accommodation was booked.”
Mr Wood says that reputable companies do not send such speculative e-mails and that fans looking for flights and accommodation should go with trusted brands. These might include the five Fifa-approved tour operators: Thomson Sport (and its offshoot Sportsworld), Thomas Cook Sport, Keith Prowse, Emirates Tours and BAC Sport. All these operators have tickets to some of the otherwise sold-out games.
Approved packages start at £2,499 with Thomson Sport for England v Slovenia or USA. However, most cost £3,000-plus, and some top £10,000. Thomson Sport is the cheapest, charging £3,999 for three England group matches, against £8,743 with Emirates.
These deals include transfers, good hotels and the services of a local representative, so they are not necessarily bad value. However, many fans cannot afford to pay the premium.
Bob Atkinson, of the comparison website Travelsupermarket.com, says that one way to cut an easy 20 per cent off package costs is to mix and match separate flight and accommodation-only deals from Fifa-approved providers. These have block-booked seats and rooms, so they can offer some flights and hotels that other tour operators cannot. By comparing prices at approved and non-approved companies alike, experts say that it is possible to tailor a no-frills independent trip, including tickets for one match, for about £1,500 to £2,000. To do this, fans must be flexible on dates, routes and accommodation.
Despite crime fears, travel experts say that independent travel to South Africa can be a safe and rewarding experience, provided that fans exercise common sense. Becca Blond, a writer for Lonely Planet guidebooks, says: “South Africa is a modern country with good transport infrastructure and it is really easy to get around on your own. Crime and carjackings are a reality, so do not carry a designer bag, wear expensive watches or go out alone after dark — but I have been there half a dozen times and have not encountered a problem.”
For those willing to go it alone, tour operators say that there are still affordable flights around the World Cup dates, though average fares are up to £1,200 to £1,500. At the time of writing, Expedia.co.uk had two-week returns from London to Johannesburg with South African Airlines for dates covering the quarter-finals, semis and final at £748.
Ms Blond says: “If you cannot find a cheap ticket to South Africa, and have the time, try flying into a neighbouring country and driving. Gaborone, the capital of Botswana, is only a six-hour drive from Johannesburg.”
Cheap accommodation is in short supply in all competition locations, with rooms starting at £170 a night, although there are a handful of better deals on multinight stays from the Fifa-approved operators. Travel experts say that rates should drop at the last minute, when companies release a considerable number of unsold rooms.
Those unwilling to risk waiting should look at rates for rooms in neighbouring towns and cities, and at campsites and homestays. Ms Blond says that the latter is the best budget bet, given the friendliness of most South Africans. She adds: “Bed and board for two people starts at about 750 rand (£63) a night through Classic Hospitality (0027 11 463 2338, classic hospitality.co.za), which is one company hooking up fans with locals.”
An even cheaper option, and safe if organised through a reputable company, is to rent a local apartment. The holiday rental service on the travel website tripadvisor.co.uk has a studio apartment “on the doorstep” of the Cape Town World Cup stadium for £33 a night over the competition period.
Wherever you stay, there are scams to watch out for once you touch down. For example, ATM fraud is widely reported in South Africa. Perpetrators attach cameras or card-cloning devices to cash machines, or loiter by them, sometimes in the bank’s “uniform”, and offer to help customers. Victims’ details are stolen and used to steal their money. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has advice on how to avoid common scams at fco.gov.uk.
How to avoid online scams
• Do not reply to e-mails from people or companies you do not know. Especially, do not open enclosed links or attachments.
• Fraudsters may pose as trusted companies or organisations, but the latter are unlikely to contact you by e-mail — and they will certainly not solicit personal details from you online.
• Listings and auction websites may or may not be vetted.
Only shop at big-name sites and read their terms and conditions before making any purchase.
• For comprehensive advice on how to avoid online scams and rip-offs, go to the government website GetSafeOnline.org.
Case study
When Mark Axon and three friends looked for World Cup travel deals they were shocked by prices of £3,000-plus from Thomson Sport and the other Fifa-approved operators for packages covering England’s group matches against Algeria and Slovenia.
Instead, the 23-year-old NHS administration assistant, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, went online and found flights and accommodation for £1,570 using travel comparison websites such as Travelsupermarket.com.
He says: “We had bought our match tickets from Fifa for £78 a game, so our total is £1,728, including internal flights with Kulula from Johannesburg to Cape Town and Port Elizabeth and staying at a decent guesthouse. After food and spending money, we should have saved at least £1,000 — and we get seven days over there, rather than five days with the packages that we saw.”
Mr Axon says that he is confident about travelling independently, especially as he will be with friends. He adds: “I often travel abroad for England games and the fans always look out for each other.”
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