Fact Check: Looking for Cricket World Cup tickets? Beware of fake links going viral on social media
A link is being rapidly shared on social media with claims that by clicking on it, you can book tickets for Cricket World Cup matches. Upon investigation, it has been found that this link is fake.
India TV Fact Check: The Cricket World Cup is being held in India this year, and this has generated a significant demand for watching matches live in the stadium. Particularly, when it comes to matches featuring the Indian cricket team, there is always intense competition for tickets, leading to various schemes and promotions. Amidst this, a link has been circulating, promising to provide tickets for stadium matches. It claims that by clicking on this link, you can either purchase or win tickets to attend the stadium matches. However, when we investigated it, this link turned out to be fake.
What is going viral?
A Facebook post was shared by a page named "Virat Match Fixer" on October 15, 2023. The caption of this post reads,
"I want to inform all of you that I am conducting a special giveaway for my 1000 subscribers. Giveaway prizes include:
1. 5 World Cup final tickets
2. 10 World Cup semi-final tickets
3. 5 Noise smartwatches
4. 5 Noise earbuds
5. 1 Vivo T1 smartphone
If you want to participate in the giveaway, subscribe to the channel or share the link below. As soon as we reach 1000 subscribers, I will announce the winners."
The post includes a link, and the link's preview also displays "ICC WORLD CUP 2023." It claims that by clicking the link shared with the post, you can book tickets for Cricket World Cup matches or even win them. Additionally, it suggests that you can win prizes such as smartwatches, earbuds, or a smartphone, in addition to match tickets.
India TV investigated
Upon clicking the link accompanying the Facebook post, we were directed to a Telegram page, specifically a Telegram group labeled 'ICC WORLD CUP 2023 TICKETS.' From here it became clear that this link is misleading. Subsequently, we conducted a detailed examination of the URL associated with this page.
The URL of this link began with "t.me/icc_worldcup_tickets." In contrast, the official website URLs for BCCI and ICC are www.bcci.tv and www.cricketworldcup.com, respectively. However, the URL of this viral link is entirely different from both of these official website URLs. Therefore, it became evident that the shared link is fake, and falling for its deception could make you susceptible to scams.
This is the real link to book tickets
Afterward, when we searched on Google for the genuine link to book tickets for the matches, we found out that you can easily book tickets for any stadium through the official BCCI website or the BOOK MY SHOW app. To book tickets, BCCI has also shared links on their official social media accounts.
When we started searching on Google regarding the fake link for booking match tickets, we discovered that many such links are being spread on the internet, and fraudsters are deceiving innocent people. It became evident that numerous cybercriminals are so cunning that even if you search on Google to book tickets, they can still defraud you through fake websites. We found a detailed report in Dainik Jagran that explained how scammers are betting on fake tickets online.
What came out in the investigation?
When we investigated the viral link, it turned out to be fake. This link is being shared with the intention of obtaining people's digital information and carrying out scams. Do not click on any suspicious links, and only use official websites to book tickets.