Central Tickets centraltickets.co.uk Central Tickets data breach: what happened and what to do
In September 2024, data from UK ticketing service Central Tickets was posted to a hacking forum. HIBP lists 722,860 accounts. Exposed: names, email addresses, phone numbers, IP addresses, purchases and passwords stored as unsalted SHA-1 hashes.
View all 13,177 breaches- Breach date
- Jul 2024
- Affected
- 722,860
- Data exposed
- Device information, Email addresses, IP addresses, Names, Passwords, Phone numbers, Purchases
- Verified
- Yes
- Last updated
Source: Have I Been Pwned (CC BY 4.0)
Reviewed by Anthon Wansland
Head of Product & Co-Founder
Serus is a privacy company with paid tools to find and remove your personal data. This page is free and based on official sources.
What happened
Central Tickets is a UK ticketing service. In September 2024, its data was posted to a hacking forum. Have I Been Pwned (HIBP) lists 722,860 affected accounts, with the breach dated 1 July 2024 and added on 30 September 2024.
According to The Ticketing Business, Central Tickets confirmed the incident, said the intrusion happened on 1 July 2024, and said the data came from a staging database on a separate server. The company reported the incident to the UK Information Commissioner's Office on 13 September and forced password resets for all users, according to coverage cited by CyberInsider and others.
Sources checked: haveibeenpwned.com, theticketingbusiness.com, cyberinsider.com
Last verified against the official page:
What was exposed
HIBP lists device information, email addresses, IP addresses, names, passwords, phone numbers and purchases. The passwords were stored as unsalted SHA-1 hashes, a weak method that makes them easier to crack.
What that lets criminals do
A name, phone number and purchase history let a scammer write a message that looks like it came from a ticket seller, such as a fake refund or a resale offer. Cracked passwords can be tried on other sites where you reused them.
What to do
Change your password everywhere you reused it, and expect text and email scams about tickets.
What to do if you were in it
- 1
Change your password, and any you reused
Change your Central Tickets password, and the password on every other account where you used the same or a similar one. Use a unique password for each account (see CISA's guidance).
- 2
Turn on two-factor login
Add two-factor authentication to your important accounts, starting with email. CISA recommends turning it on wherever it's offered.
- 3
Expect phishing that mentions the breach
Treat unexpected emails, texts and calls with suspicion, especially ones that mention this breach or ask you to act fast. Don't click links in them; go to the company's site yourself. The FTC explains how to spot phishing. Be wary of texts or emails about refunds, cancelled events or resale offers.
- 4
Check your card and bank statements
Look for charges you don't recognize and report them to your bank. HIBP doesn't list payment card numbers for this breach, but your purchase history was included.
- 5
Check whether your email or phone is in this and other breaches
Run a free Serus scan to see which breaches include your email or phone number. Serus monitors breach databases and the dark web and alerts you when your details show up in a new leak. It can't remove data that has already leaked.
Timeline
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The breach happened
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Added to Have I Been Pwned
Frequently asked
Was I affected by the Central Tickets breach?
Search your email on Have I Been Pwned or run a free Serus scan. HIBP lists 722,860 accounts.
What was exposed?
Names, email addresses, phone numbers, IP addresses, device information, purchases and passwords stored as unsalted SHA-1 hashes.
Should I change my password?
Yes, and change it anywhere you used the same one. Central Tickets reportedly forced a reset for all users, but reused passwords elsewhere are still at risk.
Did Central Tickets report it to a regulator?
According to coverage of the company's statement, it reported the incident to the UK Information Commissioner's Office on 13 September 2024.
Sources
- Have I Been Pwned: CentralTickets
- haveibeenpwned.com/Breach/CentralTickets
- theticketingbusiness.com/2024/10/15/central-tickets-confirms-data-breach
- cyberinsider.com/central-tickets-data-breach-exposed-722860-accounts-and-personal-data/
- consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2022/10/have-you-been-affected-data-breach-read
- cisa.gov/secure-our-world/require-strong-passwords
- cisa.gov/secure-our-world/turn-on-mfa
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