What is the airline ticket scam (and how to avoid it)

There are a lot of people wanting to take money from you. Think of the Pix scam, for example. Now, it is also worth keeping an eye on another criminal scheme: the airline ticket scam.

It affects those who like to travel and always try to save on the ticket. If you identify with this or know someone organizing a trip, pay attention.

What is the airline ticket scam and how does it work?

This scam happens when an individual pretends to be a travel agency. With a false name and a personal account, he or she sells tourist “packages” or plane tickets at tempting prices. Packages and tickets that, of course, do not exist.

It works like this. The scammer usually opens a personal account at a bank and changes the pro name to a fictitious branch. “América Travels”, for example. Then, starts to approach potential clients with advantageous values. While offering the products, he or she simulates the purchase on the website of a real agency or airline to compare prices. He even goes so far as to make the reservation in the victim's name.

Enchanted by the "discount" and trusting the reservation, the victim closes the trip and transfers the money via Pix to the scammer's account. Confirmed the payment, he informs the reservation code. That's where the hit comes. A few minutes after the conversation, the scammer disappears, the reservation is canceled and the victim is left without the money.

How to avoid falling into it

You understand how it works, right? The scammer uses an individual account, not a company. Consequently, there is no CNPJ or PJ account.

This is how you avoid falling for this type of scam. When transferring, always check whether the account belongs to an individual (if so, it will have a registered CPF) or a legal entity (in this case, it will have a registered CNPJ).

Whenever you think you are transferring money to a company and see that a CPF appeared in the account data, be suspicious. It's a blow.

Here at N26 we do not offer corporate accounts. That is, if you see an N26 Account with a company name, you can report it. Just contact any of the numbers or emails at the bottom of this page.

I fell for the scam, now what?

Well, the first step when realizing that you've fallen for the airline ticket scam is to take it easy, okay? Take a print of the entire conversation you had with the scammer, including the account information he passed and the receipts.

With this in hand, immediately contact the financial institution that received your transfer and explain what happened. See which is the right way to send them the prints and receipts.