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Vaccine site scam warning
Seminole County issued a warning after a fake vaccine sign-up site was created which caused a lot of trouble for people and the reason behind it is still unclear.
LAKE MARY, Fla. - After an alert from Seminole County about a fake vaccination event, FOX 35 News learned the event may not be fraud, according to claims by Eventbrite.
Since vaccinations started being distributed, many counties have relied on ticketing websites like Eventbrite.
Thursday, Seminole County warned people of a fake vaccination event listed on the website claiming appointments could be made at the Oviedo Mall from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
FOX 35 News reached out to Eventbrite who claimed the "unofficial listings" are likely not the result of fraud but of user error. The company released the following statement:
"Eventbrite is a self-service ticketing and experience platform, and many local organizations have used our technology to efficiently manage efforts that aid in addressing COVID-19, from coordinating distribution of food donations to virtual educational events. We are actively exploring how our platform can best support the effort to increase access to vaccines.
"Our team has investigated and has not found evidence of vaccine registration events being created for the purpose of malice. The unofficial event listings we have found, some of which are charging a fee, are likely a result of user error, where people are mistakenly creating new event listings instead of signing up for a time slot. We recognize this has caused confusion and are continuing to monitor and take action to remove these listings."
The State Attorney’s Office issued a similar warning as Seminole County about fake vaccination appointments.
When asked about Eventbrite’s claim, officials told FOX 35 News they are working with the company to ensure people are being taken advantage of through any fraudulent scheme.
"Last week, upon hearing about reports of suspicious scams on the platform, our Office issued a Consumer Alert to warn all consumers about vaccine scams," read a statement from the State Attorney’s Office "Eventbrite confirmed that all unofficial listings for vaccine reservations have been removed from its platform and refunds have been made to anyone who may have paid for a reservation. Eventbrite has reported that it will review all new posts related to COVID-19 or vaccines and take action to disable any future unauthorized sites and make refunds to affected consumers."
Eventbrite has published a resource to help people identify and report unofficial vaccination events. Users can also report unauthorized postings at the bottom of every event listing on Eventbrite, according to the platform.