The ePass Solution for Paperless Tickets

As more artists and venues try to crack down on scalping, a myriad of tactics are being used to try to reduce the number of scalped or fraudulent tickets. The Fairness in Ticketing Act is a legislative effort in Tennessee aimed at cracking down on those who scalp tickets.

Though the bill has not passed yet, some venues have implemented paperless tickets for live concerts. Some attendees thought that the paperless ticket was incredibly inconvenient. They were told in an email that the purchaser of the tickets had to be there with a credit card and ID and had to enter the venue with all of the other ticket holders at the same time. This isn't a practical solution in today's world.

The current tactics used for picking up digital paperless tickets isn't very convenient
for the ticket buyer. The ePass Secure Paperless Ticket Solution eliminates
these obstacles for the buyer, the venue and the artist. 

Legislation supported by Ticketmaster, which already controls the vast majority of ticket sales in Tennessee, will further tighten its grip on the ticket market, specifically the resale market, while stripping ticket-buyers of their property rights. Those in opposition believe the bill's restrictions are unfair. Ticketmaster also said the paperless ticket option is selected by the artist, team or venue and have proven to cut down on scalping.

"The bill says that our tickets can be revoked, for any reason, at any time," said bill opponent Dick Darr. John Potter, President of the Fan Freedom Project added. "Is there any other product in Tennessee where the seller can take it back for no reason whatsoever and have no obligation to give you a refund? I doubt it."

What if the person who bought the tickets couldn't go to the concert or didn't want to go to the concert anymore? No doubt, they would have liked the option to have been able to give the tickets to somebody else or even sell them to a friend.

With the ePass Secure Changing Barcode App, concert venues and ticket purchasers have
a safe solution for paperless tickets without the inconveniences currently being
imposed on ticket holders.

The ePass paperless ticket solution provides the ticket-buyer with a constantly changing barcode so they can pass along the secure barcode to anyone they please. The digital barcode ticket cannot be duplicated because it is constantly changing so venues can rest assured that they aren’t fueling scalpers. In addition, they are offering the ticket purchaser the freedom they want with their digital tickets.

Watch this video to get more familiar with this paperless ticket solution. http://www.epassapp.com/secure_bar_code_changing_system.html

On the day of the event, the digital barcode holder simply attends the event and their barcode is scanned. The venue can be certain that no tampering, digital or otherwise has taken place because that barcode in the image above wouldn’t be the same from one minute to the next.

The ePass solution gives the buyer the freedom and flexibility they had with paper tickets but now the venue has the peace of mind knowing that they aren’t helping scalpers get away charging absorbent prices. 

To learn more about how ePass can help your venue reduce the effects of scalping, increase customer satisfaction and add a new level of security to your paperless ticketing initiative. To contact us, please call our Sales Team at (305) 343-7480 and we would be pleased to share some ideas for secure solutions to for future live events. 

Can the IRS put a stop to Tax Return Fraud?

It seems as though everyday there is another article discussing the hurdles about digitizing common recurring tasks - like filing your taxes. It appears that thieves are filing fraudulent tax returns because of the process the IRS goes through to review a tax return. Click here to read the article on CNN.

Debit cards are a huge problem because they are widely used by legitimate taxpayers who may not have a bank account.

Over one hundred and forty million Americans are filing their returns every year and not every taxpayer has a bank account, so the debit cards that are issued by a third-party provider are a legitimate way for taxpayers to get their refund.

Last year, the IRS reported 938,664 fraudulent returns related to identity theft, totaling $6.5 billion. It appears that there are more folks attempting identity theft. Last year, the IRS identified at least 582,000 taxpayers who were the victims of identity theft, which is more than double the amount from only three years prior.

In testimony before Congress last year, National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson said the IRS has implemented a number of filters to catch the fraud, including an electronic marker to mark accounts of verified identity theft victims, an IRS identity theft affidavit form and a standardized list of acceptable documents to substantiate identity theft.

The number of fraudulent returns is having a major impact on other law abiding taxpayers.

The IRS began issuing an Identity Protection Personal Identification Number to victims of identity theft when filing their future returns. What they should be issuing identity theft victims is an automatically changing identity barcode, that changes every minute so if that person was targeted by thieves once, it isn’t likely to happen again because the culprits won’t be able to track that person’s changing barcode. 

It seems the IRS is caught in a bit of a quagmire because they want to get tax refunds into the hands of taxpayers but at the same time they are trying to deal with fraud in crude ways. The way to deal with this kind of fraud is to prevent the thieves from ever gaining access to anyone’s identity in the first place. 

With ePass, our changing barcode technology puts a stop-gap in place that can be used for all taxpayers and not just the ones who have already been victimized. Below is a video endorsement from a retired FBI agent who specialized in bank fraud and has been exposed to a variety of security solutions. Click the play button to watch his testimonial. 

Visit our website www.epassapp.com to learn more about how our technology can help your organization protect sensitive customer or client information and keep it out of the hands of the ever-growing number of thieves looking to steal from or gain unauthorized access to secure and confidential information. 

Call our Sales Team at (305) 343-7480 to learn more about how ePass can secure all of your electronic transactions. 

The TSA is Considering Automating ID Checks

The Transportation Security Administration has announced plans to test machines that can electronically verify passengers' travel documents because the repetitive task of visually inspecting boarding passes leaves plenty of room for human error. They are calling it Credential Authentication Technology - basically boarding pass scanning systems. Click the article link below to read the story published in the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/20/business/tsa-is-considering-automating-id-checks.html?scp=1&sq=itineraries&st=cse

TSA announced plans to test machines to electronically check passengers' travel documents.

The TSA has come under scrutiny because there have been instances of vulnerability where passengers have flown with an expired or duplicate boarding pass. With the new convenience of online check-in, it is easy to digitally alter a real boarding pass with a different name or new travel date and print a copy that would get throuh the visual scrutiny TSA is currently using.

ePass's secure changing barcode technology is a viable option to address the concerns facing TSA. Our technology changes the barcode every minute which makes it impossible to create fraudulent documents.

For more information on ePass and about our technology, we encourage you visit our website at www.epassapp.com to witness our technology in action. Contact us at (305) 343-7480 to speak with our Sales Team directly and learn how ePass is the leader in credential authentication technology.

ePass Gets an Endorsement from an FBI Special Agent

Receiving endorsements is always something we enjoy at ePass, however, when a retired FBI Special Agent, who has seen some of the best government and private sector security protocols, claims that our secure changing barcode technology is some of the best he's every seen, well that's worth sharing with others.

Click on the video thumbnail below to hear his endorsement.

Here are some features that show why so many people are endorsing ePass:

• Automatically changing bar code system™" by eCredentials™, Inc.
• Distribution (accessibility accessed remotely worldwide)
• Our patents and trademarks protected Intellectual Property Algorithms, and support systems equipment
• Strap Case Assembly™ (solar charged, stackable plug in charged, battery back up, RFID sensor) for all smartphones
• Dedicated ePass™ units (solar charged, stackable plug in charged, battery back up, RFID locator)
• ePass™ eCredentials™ App on all app stores or online at our website - download free to all users to register, and to event organizers to securely utilize
• Back end Admin system - PC based licensed or sold to any event organizers or their appointed register company
• Wireless hand bar code scanner equipment (Standard equipment)
• Wireless automatic entrance auto changing barcode™ RFID scanner reader equipment (our Intellectual property version of RFID tied to our changing barcode system™ scanner)

Call our offices at (305) 343-7480 and we'd be happy to answer any questions you have about licensing or implementing ePass for all your secure electronic transaction needs.