MAIN Event Ticketing Act Cracks Down on Ticket Bots with $10K Daily Fines and Mandatory Seller Security

The Mitigating Automated Internet Networks for Event Ticketing Act, or the MAIN Event Ticketing Act, is a major update to the existing BOTS Act aimed at making it harder for scalpers to hoard tickets using automated software. Simply put, this bill explicitly bans using bots to bypass ticket purchasing rules—like those annoying limits of four tickets per customer—and puts the enforcement burden squarely on ticket sellers and the FTC. This isn't just a slap on the wrist; the penalties for bot use are getting steep, with minimum fines starting at $10,000 per day of violation.

The Security Upgrade Every Ticket Seller Has to Install

If you’ve ever been frustrated watching concert tickets sell out in 30 seconds flat, this section is for you. The bill mandates that ticket sellers—the websites where you buy tickets—must significantly beef up their security. According to Section 2, they must implement “reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards” to enforce purchasing limits and secure customer data. This means they can’t just say there’s a limit; they have to use technology to enforce it. For the average person, this should mean a fairer shot at scoring tickets without competing against sophisticated software.

Crucially, this bill also requires sellers to police their own subcontractors. If a ticket seller uses a third-party vendor to handle payment processing or data, that vendor must also meet strong security requirements. This closes a potential loophole where security could be outsourced and neglected. However, these new mandates mean compliance costs will go up for sellers. While the goal is better security, it remains to be seen if those increased operational costs get passed directly to consumers through higher ticket fees.

Reporting the Cheaters and Stiffening the Penalties

The MAIN Act introduces mandatory reporting and steep financial consequences designed to deter bot users. If a ticket seller discovers that someone successfully bypassed their security measures (what the bill calls “circumvention”), they have to report that incident to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) within 30 days. This means sellers can’t just sweep successful hacks under the rug; they have to own up and fix the problem.

And for the bot users? The financial risk is massive. Violators face a minimum penalty of $10,000 for every day the violation continues, plus an extra $1,000 per individual violation. If the bot use was intentional, add another $10,000 per violation on top of that. This is the bill’s way of ensuring that the profit margins for illegal ticket scalping shrink dramatically, making it a much riskier business model.

What This Means for the Everyday Fan

This legislation is a clear win for the average concert-goer or sports fan. The FTC is required to set up a public website within 180 days where consumers can report suspected violations. This gives regular people a direct line to enforcement, moving the fight against bots out of the customer service queue and into the realm of federal law enforcement. The bill also mandates coordination between the FTC, FBI, and Department of Justice to share information about “cyberattacks” aimed at ticketing systems, which should help agencies track down the sophisticated criminal enterprises behind large-scale bot operations. The goal is simple: if you’re a real person, you should have a much better chance of buying a ticket at face value.