Even Macros Won't Help: Police Join Forces with Ticket Platforms to Combat Scalping

Briefing Session on Macro Detection Mechanisms at Reservation Agencies

The police are joining forces with ticket reservation platforms to eradicate the problem of ticket scalping for performances and other events. The plan is to enhance investigative capabilities based on macro detection mechanisms that have been utilized by private reservation agencies.

The National Office of Investigation at the Korean National Police Agency announced on May 13 that it will hold a briefing session on the analysis and prevention of fraudulent reservations using macros, in collaboration with Nol Universe Co., Ltd., NHN Link Co., Ltd., and others, to boost its analytical and investigative capabilities regarding illegal ticket-purchasing macros. The session will cover the operating mechanisms of macro programs, including the detection, blocking, and defense logic systems managed by reservation agencies, as well as record analysis—information that is highly valuable for investigations.

The Korean National Police Agency, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and reservation agencies have jointly formed the “Public-Private Council for the Prevention of Performance and Sports Ticket Scalping” to strengthen their own information gathering, investigations, and crackdowns. The upcoming briefing is a continuation of these efforts. The aim is to help frontline investigators acquire technical indicators for macro detection, further professionalizing their technical identification capabilities in the field.

The police have noted that macro-based ticket scalping crimes have evolved beyond simple transactions between individuals into organized operations, with divided roles at each stage: program development, account collection, proxy reservations, and scalped ticket sales. Through public-private cooperation, the police expect that the macro response techniques and abnormal transaction detection systems accumulated by each reservation agency will contribute directly to apprehending scalping offenders in ongoing investigations.

Park Woohyun, Director of Cyber Investigation at the Korean National Police Agency, stated, "Fraudulent ticket transactions using macros are a clear crime that deprives many people of the opportunity to purchase tickets legitimately. The police plan to continuously expand cooperation with reservation agencies and related organizations, further tightening the investigative net on macro-based offenders."