Club apologises after CYBER ATTACK forces Liverpool FC to halt ticket sales

Liverpool Football Club has apologised to fans after thousands were left frustrated by issues with the club's ticketing system.

The Premier League club had made home game tickets for the first half of the new Premier League season available to members on Wednesday, 17 July, but were forced to halt sales following a cyber attack that targeted its ticketing system, leaving the club scrambling to address the issue.

These tickets were initially offered exclusively to those who had attended at least 13 home games last season. However, within an hour, the ticketing system was brought to a standstill, forcing the club to announce a suspension of sales.

A 'sophisticated' bot attack

Liverpool FC initially described the disruption as a "serious technical issue with the ticketing system." The club had intended to resume sales later that day but was unable to do so.

In an email sent to affected members, as reported by Cyber Daily, the club later revealed that the issue was caused by a "sustained, sophisticated bot attack" unlike any it had previously encountered.

“This is hugely disappointing and frustrating as we have made a number of significant improvements to our supplier’s ticketing system to try and prevent this type of cyber crime,” Liverpool FC stated in the email.

“We will continue to work with our fan groups to improve the selling processes and systems and will consider all options that will eventually deliver the experience our fans deserve.

"We are sorry we have not managed to prevent unacceptable fraudulent activity which has impacted our genuine and valued supporters.”

Investigation under way

The club did not disclose the specific nature of the bot attack, but media reports suggest an investigation is underway to determine how the breach occurred. It remains unclear whether the attackers aimed to cause disruption or to purchase tickets fraudulently.

As a result, Liverpool FC has suspended ticket sales until further notice.

The ticketing system, managed by a third party, will undergo additional security enhancements before sales can resume.

The club assures fans that it is working diligently to resolve the issue and will announce a new date for ticket sales to reopen once it is confident that the system is secure, expected to be "in the coming weeks", according to The Athletic.

No threat actor has claimed responsibility for the attack thus far.