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7 clusters · 13 sources · 48 days · First seen · Last updated

South Korean crackdown on ticket scalping

Overview

South Korean authorities have intensified their crackdown on illegal ticket scalping through legislative changes and major criminal investigations. As of August 28, 2026, amendments to the Performance Act and the National Sports Promotion Act went into effect, allowing for administrative fines of up to 50 times the original sale price for unauthorized resellers. These regulations prohibit bypassing official procedures to resell tickets at a premium, regardless of whether macro programs are utilized.

Following these legislative changes, reports of scalping have surged to an average of 2,000 cases per day, representing a 17-fold increase compared to the previous year. On October 6, 2026, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism requested investigations into 170 individuals suspected of illegal scalping for professional sports and performances. These suspects are involved in the attempted sale of approximately 11,032 tickets, with an estimated total value exceeding 1 billion won. Professional sports scalping accounts for the majority of these cases, involving 121 individuals and roughly 930 million won in ticket value.

In response to high volumes of reports—with approximately 90,000 sports-related illegal sale reports received through October 7—authorities are launching a joint crackdown during the professional baseball postseason. Starting October 14, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korean National Police Agency, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation will conduct on-site inspections at ticket booths and stadium entrances in cities including Seoul, Daegu, Gwangju, and Suwon. Under the strengthened National Sports Promotion Act, offenders may now face up to one year in prison or fines of up to 10 million won.

Entities

Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism · Korean National Police Agency · BTS · Korea Sports Promotion Foundation · SEVENTEEN

Timeline

  1. [CRIME] 2 sources
    South Korea to crack down on baseball ticket scalping

    South Korean authorities will conduct joint on-site crackdowns on illegal baseball ticket scalping during the postseason to enforce stricter penalties under the revised National Sports Promotion Act.

  2. [CRIME] 2 sources
    South Korea investigates 170 individuals for illegal ticket scalping

    South Korea has requested investigations into 170 people suspected of illegal ticket scalping for sports and performances, involving over 1 billion won in suspected fraudulent sales.

  3. [CRIME] 2 sources
    South Korean police arrest 157 scalpers using macro programs

    South Korean police arrested 157 scalpers for using macro programs to illegally resell concert, sports, and train tickets, seizing approximately 2 billion won in criminal proceeds.

  4. [CRIME] 2 sources
    President Lee vows to confiscate illegal ticket scalping profits

    President Lee Jae-myung pledged to confiscate illegal profits from ticket scalpers following the arrest of a man who made 1.6 billion won reselling tickets, including BTS concert seats.

  5. [CRIME] 5 sources
    South Korean man arrested for 2.4 billion won ticket scalping scheme

    A South Korean man was arrested for using macro programs to scalp nearly 9,000 tickets for major concerts and sports events, generating roughly 2.4 billion won in sales with markups up to 30 times the original.

  6. [POLITICS] 4 sources
    South Korea implements strict penalties for ticket scalping

    South Korea has launched new regulations to combat ticket scalping for sports and performances, introducing fines of up to 50 times the sale price and rewards for whistleblowers.

  7. [CRIME] 2 sources
    South Korean police crack down on K-pop ticket scalping ring

    South Korean police have referred two individuals to prosecutors for using macro programs to illegally book and resell thousands of K-pop concert tickets, including those for BTS, netting hundreds of millionss.

Sources

biz.heraldcorp.com · idsn.co.kr · jnilbo.com · kgnews.co.kr · koreastardaily.com · kyeonggi.com · mbn.co.kr · mbn.mk.co.kr · namdonews.com · seoul.co.kr · sportschosun.com · tenasia.hankyung.com · zdnet.co.kr

This summary has been updated 5 times: see revision history