Despite additional verification through Diia, resellers in Ukraine have found a way to massively buy out “Ukrzaliznytsia” tickets using bots and a network of fake accounts. Tickets are resold at several times the original price, and the company has already handed over data on violators to law enforcement agencies and is preparing new protective measures.
Source: OBOZREVATEL
This is reported in an investigation by BIHUS Info. Despite the implementation of electronic protection systems and limits, fraudsters find new ways to profit from passengers.
“We conducted an experiment and purchased a ticket for the Kyiv–Chișinău international flight through resellers. It was the same route where authorization through Diia is mandatory, but for intermediaries, this was not an obstacle,” the journalists report.
According to the investigation, the dealers use multiple accounts and special algorithms that allow them to buy popular tickets in bulk before regular users can access them. Most often, this concerns high-demand routes—for example, night trains to western Ukraine or routes to frontline regions.
After that, tickets are resold through third-party services or messengers at inflated prices, generating profits several times higher than the official cost. “It’s enough to find the right Telegram channel or group to order a ticket for the desired flight. The service costs about 1,000 hryvnias, but the client receives no guarantees. People are often simply deceived,” the article notes.
The feature of the scheme is an automated approach. Some resellers, according to sources, use bots that monitor the “Ukrzaliznytsia” website around the clock and instantly reserve seats. Others operate through a network of fictitious individuals, issuing tickets under different passports and then providing the data to the buyer. This minimizes the risk of blocking and bypasses ticket personalization rules.
In closed communities, dozens of ads can be found offering to “help” find a seat for an extra fee. “In the last two weeks, just one of these groups issued over 300 tickets. They openly admit that they have experience and understand how the system works, and emphasize that they do not provide 100% guarantees, but mostly fulfill orders,” the report says.
A particularly telling moment occurred with the purchase of a ticket on a flight where verification through Diia is mandatory. Investigators explain that the system allows any person to authorize, not necessarily the one for whom the ticket is issued, creating a loophole for abuse.
Moreover, resellers work proactively and book seats in advance; the price can reach 4–5 thousand hryvnias for a ticket on a popular international route. After the investigation was published, “Ukrzaliznytsia” stated that it had already blocked one of the accounts mentioned in the article using its anti-fraud system.
“All contacts will be handed over to the National Police. A criminal case has been opened against fraudsters who profit from passengers,” the journalists reported.
At the same time, “Ukrzaliznytsia” acknowledges that fighting resellers is difficult because they create new accounts, use different SIM cards, and software tools. Verification through Diia has reduced the scale of the problem but has not eliminated it. Ukrzaliznytsia promises to strengthen protection algorithms, add new levels of verification, and actively cooperate with the cyber police to block illegal resale channels.
Experts emphasize that as long as demand exceeds supply, such schemes will continue to appear. At the same time, passengers are urged to buy tickets only through official services to avoid overpayment and fraud.