As demand for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) match tickets rises this IPL season, cybercriminals are taking advantage of fans through fake websites, Instagram impersonators, and well-planned scams that have already caused losses worth lakhs of rupees.
In one incident, a 25-year-old techie from Bengaluru lost Rs 1.46 lakh to a fraudster who contacted him on Instagram.
Fraudster poses as stadium official
The victim, who lives in B Narayanapura, told Mahadevapura Police in his complaint that a man posing as Sumit Biswal, a senior supervisor at the ticket counter of M Chinnaswamy Stadium, claimed he could arrange IPL tickets along with food coupons for the high-demand RCB vs Chennai Super Kings (CSK) match scheduled on Sunday, according to a report by Deccan Herald.
To gain the victim’s trust, the fraudster asked him to come near Gate 10 of the stadium and even sent a fake email confirmation. “He asked me to come near the stadium gate number 10, saying someone would deliver the tickets within minutes, and even sent an email confirmation to gain my trust,” the complainant told DH.
Multiple payments made under false promises
In a First Information Report (FIR) filed at the Mahadevapura police station, the victim said he agreed to buy two tickets for Rs 3,700 each. However, the fraudster kept asking for more money as a security deposit, promising it would be refunded later. When the victim reached his transaction limit, he started using his mother’s bank account and ended up transferring a total of Rs 1.46 lakh. Despite this, he did not receive any tickets.
“Initially, I agreed to buy two tickets for Rs 3,700 each, but he kept asking for more money under various pretexts such as refundable security deposits, additional ID cards and food coupons. Trusting him, I made multiple payments—even using my mother’s bank account after exhausting my own limits—and ended up transferring around Rs 1.46 lakh,” the news outlet quoted the complainant, as saying.
Fake RCB ticket website
In another similar case, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Electronic City) M Narayana on Saturday said that a fake website posing as RCB’s official ticketing platform cheated several users ahead of Sunday’s match against CSK. The fake website showed convincing details – “M Chinnaswamy Stadium Bengaluru, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, IPL 2026 tickets on sale” – allowed users to choose seats and make payments, and then immediately shut down after the transactions were completed, according to a report by The Indian Express.
Three victims have filed complaints at Hulimavu police station, reporting losses of Rs 7,196, Rs 11,991, and Rs 7,497. A cyber fraud case has been registered, and the police have started action to block the accounts involved and have asked social media platforms to remove related content, it added.