Opportune scammers
With Clarion Gaming’s ICE London 2023 due to take place from 7 to 9 February, attendees are getting ready to network among the biggest names in the gaming industry. However, some Clarion customers hoping to get info on other attendees are losing money to scammers.
According to reports that first surfaced on LinkedIn on Thursday, ICE ticket holders are receiving numerous emails from accounts trying to sell lists of the event’s other attendees. One iGaming CEO, Phil Pearson of White Label Casinos, confirmed that he now has 621 such emails in his inbox.
they spent 500 Euro on a list and it never appeared…”
In response to Pearson’s shocking figure, Alex Pratt, managing director for ICE organizer Clarion, confirmed that some customers are actually losing cash to these scammers. “We had a customer call in the other day saying they spent 500 Euro on a list and it never appeared… Shock Horror,” Pratt said.
A wide-spread issue
Other LinkedIn users also responded to Pearson’s post, confirming they had received similar emails.
Julia Logan, an SEO Consultant for IrishWonder’s SEO Consulting, confirmed that scam emails litter her account. After declining to purchase the data, she claims she was then contacted by others who had forked up the cash. Logan claims the lists are simply “scraped data off the events sites,” adding: “It’s actually not even attendees but exhibitors so pretty useless.”
Julia Roberts is trying to sell me fake versions of data I already have.”
Meanwhile, Aaron Noy, an SEO specialist who also works for Clarion, confirmed that having an email address linked to the event organizer has not made him immune to receiving such spam. Noy said they even use celebrity names, “so Julia Roberts is trying to sell me fake versions of data I already have.”
Pratt also explained that Clarion has attempted to stop the scammers to no avail. He said: “We send legal letters but doesn’t do anything… The worst ones are when they pretend to be from Clarion and actually look marginally legitimate.”
Bigger than ever
In spite of scammers trying to make a quick buck, Clarion believes ICE London 2023 will be the best version of the gaming event yet. It will take place at the ExCel London and this year will feature the largest floor space on record.
The 51,466-square-meter space exceeds the previous record of 49,690 from three years go. In total, ICE will occupy 41 halls of the famous exhibition and convention center, with Clarion’s other affiliate-focused show iGB Affiliate London taking up the remaining three halls.