Searching for Eagles-49ers tickets? Here’s how to steer clear of scams.

Many people hoping to nab tickets to Sunday’s NFC championship game were left disappointed Tuesday as Eagles playoff tickets once again sold out in minutes.

Out-of-luck Birds fans are resigned to stalking secondary market sites this week, scouring for the cheapest tickets to see the Eagles take on the San Francisco 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field.

But proceed with caution and common sense.

Scammers are familiar, too, with all the frenzied ticket hunts happening in the days leading up to popular events, consumer protection experts told The Inquirer earlier this month.

Hot-ticket events such as Sunday’s games are happening, too, amid a broader landscape of increased scam risks.

“It seems like at least attempts to sell counterfeit tickets to events are on the rise,” said Teresa Murray, consumer watchdog for the Public Interest Research Group. “And we think part of the reason is the pandemic. Large events were on hold for months and months in 2020,” creating pent-up demand.

Now “it seems like life is sort of kind of getting back to normal, so there’s a higher demand for tickets,” she added. “There are scam artists that are looking to take advantage of that.”

Murray and Andrew Goode, vice president of the Better Business Bureau for Metropolitan Washington, D.C., and Eastern Pennsylvania, say these are their best tips for avoiding scams and price gouging:

Don’t deviate from the big names: SeatGeek, StubHub, Ticketmaster, and Vivid Seats, which verify bar codes on tickets to ensure they’ll scan at the stadium gates.

If by chance you get scammed through one of these sites, they have policies that guarantee a refund or a valid replacement ticket.

Before buying tickets, it would be wise to locate and read the reseller’s refund policy.

Steer clear of strangers selling tickets on Facebook, Craigslist, or other social media sites.

If your cousin or a friend is a season ticket holder who can’t attend Sunday’s game, by all means, buy them.

But buy tickets directly only from someone you know and trust.

“If you are buying tickets, really through any sellers, make sure the section and the seat number on the ticket you’re buying actually exist at that venue,” Murray said. “Obviously if it doesn’t, that is a red flag.”

The Linc section map can be found at lincolnfinancialfield.com/seating-bowl-diagram.

Come across an unbelievable price, much lower than for a similar ticket on any other site?

Be extra cautious.

“Are the ticket prices too good to be true, or are they somewhere in line with the marketplace?” Goode said. “Most of the sellers are going to show tickets in the same area of an arena or a stadium or a theater for approximately the same price.”

“If you’re dealing with someone who is selling for a lot less,” he said, “that would be a red flag.”

Some con artists create websites that look similar to the legitimate, trusted sites, but are really fronts to get users’ credit card information.

To avoid falling into these traps, don’t just Google “Eagles tickets” or click on an advertisement. Go to a reseller’s site directly.

If you’re still unsure whether a website can be trusted, look at the front of the URL bar, in the top left corner of your tab. If there is a padlock symbol there, and the site address starts with “https,” you can breathe a bit easier.

“That shows there is a level of security. It’s probably a properly registered website,” Goode said. However, “that’s not an indication of 100% safety. It’s important that people continue to do some due diligence with that purchase.”

Read the URL slowly and carefully, too. Be on the look out for missing letters, added characters, or typos.

Don’t rush to buy tickets by a certain day.

“It’s hard to know when prices will get higher or lower,” Goode said, “but for some events the ticket prices tend to get a little cheaper as you get closer to the event.”

“Anybody who is buying tickets really from anywhere — unless it’s the person you sit next to at work and you’re going to pay in cash — buy tickets with a credit card,” Murray said.

Avoid Venmo, cash, or check, unless it’s a friend, family member, or trusted colleague. And don’t use a debit card, because it typically doesn’t have the same level of fraud protection and could put you at risk of additional fraud.