We are committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour in this market.

As set out in our reply to Question 61995, we believe that ticket pricing strategies are ultimately a matter for event organisers and ticketing platforms, providing they comply with relevant legislation, particularly regarding transparency with customers on how tickets are priced, in order to help consumers make a fair and informed decision.

We are committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour in this market.

As set out in our reply to Question 61995, we believe that ticket pricing strategies are ultimately a matter for event organisers and ticketing platforms, providing they comply with relevant legislation, particularly regarding transparency with customers on how tickets are priced, in order to help consumers make a fair and informed decision.

DCMS officials are routinely in touch with relevant ticketing trade bodies and organisations, to discuss ongoing developments in the market, as are BEIS and Competition and Markets Authority officials. As a Government, we are committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour.

Ultimately, ticket pricing strategies are a matter for event organisers and ticketing platforms, providing they comply with relevant legislation. As the Consumer Rights Act makes clear, event organisers and ticketing platforms are expected to be transparent with customers on how they price their tickets and what specific pricing strategies they use. This is to help consumers to make a fair and informed decision.

A cross-whitehall official led meeting was convened on 28 June 2018 to discuss the ticketmaster incident. Attendees included representatives from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the National Crime Agency and the National Cyber Security Centre.

The National Crime Agency’s criminal investigation is ongoing. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has concluded a number of investigative strands to help Ticketmaster remediate and mitigate the compromise, and have since released relevant advice and guidance to the NCSC website: https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/news/statement-ticketmaster-cyber-incident

Ticketmaster have released details about the data incident which stated that 5% of its global customer base had been affected and those affected have been contacted by the company with details on how to reset passwords. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has issued advice to customers of Ticketmaster which includes guidance on changing passwords which is freely available on the NCSC website. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is in regular contact with Ticketmaster, and their investigation into this matter is ongoing. The ICO will provide further detail on the incident on conclusion of their investigation.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) have been made aware of an issue concerning Ticketmaster and I can confirm that the Information Commissioner is making enquiries with the company. The ICO is looking at when the incident happened and when it was discovered as part of their work and this will inform whether it is dealt with under the 1998 or 2018 Data Protection Acts.

The Government takes both the protection of personal data and the right to privacy extremely seriously. The Data Protection Act 2018 makes our data protection laws fit for the digital age in which an ever increasing amount of data is being processed and empowers people to take control of their data.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) issued a statement on the Ticketmaster breach on 27th June and guidance for customers was issued on its website on the 28th June. The National Crime Agency and NCSC continue to investigate this incident as a priority, including working with all parties to ascertain the full scale of the incident and to provide ongoing remediation advice. As part of this and broader mitigation advice, the NCSC and Information Commissioner’s Office have issued a set of General Data Protection Regulation Security Outcomes in order to ensure the appropriate security of personal data.

The NCSC supports the most critical organisations in the UK, the wider public sector, industry and SMEs. This include the provision of freely available guidance on its website which, if followed, enables institutions and companies to put measures in place to help protect themselves from cyber attacks. When incidents do occur, the NCSC provides effective incident response to minimise harm to the UK, help with recovery, and learn lessons for the future.

Ticketmaster is contracted by Parliament to provide ticketing for Parliament’s commercial tours. This includes online, phone and group sales and also the provision of software and hardware for the onsite ticket office. Ticketmaster is also contracted to provide technical support, event management and marketing support. The fulfilment of the contract is based upon the delivery of these services, and a service level agreement covers the following criteria:

payment of moneys received;

provision of management information;

the issue of tickets to customers;

quality control (via envelope checks);

customer phone hold times;

phone abandonment rate; and

customer complaints.