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From BBB of the Tri-Counties: While Covid-19 attendance restrictions have been lifted, schools are still streaming games. Unfortunately, the scammers have followed. The scammers’ goal is to capture personal information, including credit card and Social Security numbers, as fans log in to watch their team play.
How the scam works:
You want to watch the local high school’s football game, or your niece’s travel softball team is playing in a tournament out of state. You search on social media to find a link where the game might be streamed, and sure enough, a fan has put in a link where you can go to watch for free! It’s almost time for the game to start, so you eagerly click the link. The next screen asks you to sign up for the streaming service, so you enter your name and email… and then you get asked for a credit card number and potentially more sensitive information. Are you seeing red flags yet? These scammers infiltrate social media with links to fake streams. The posts often will tag the schools which are involved in order to make the post appear legitimate. The scammers hope the would-be viewer inputs their information and pays to watch the event. The consumer doesn’t get to watch the game because the scammer has not set up a stream. Instead, whatever data they entered may be compromised.
As a new school year begins, Better Business Bureau® (BBB®) reminds consumers to do their research when looking to watch a high school sporting event online.
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