COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is warning potential guests of fraudulent ticket discount offers circulating on social media. 

The zoo shared two instances of fake ticket offers appearing on social media. In one scam, a Facebook account with the name “Zoo Anniversary” was offering four Columbus Zoo tickets for $2. Another fake ad was offering four tickets for $6.95.

The zoo urges users to look out for deals being offered from third party websites and social media pages that aren’t the Columbus Zoo’s official accounts. The Columbus Zoo’s official social media accounts have a blue verification check mark on all platforms besides TikTok – their official TikTok account is “@ColumbusZooandAquarium.”

The Columbus Zoo also said to be wary of deals that seem “too good to be true.” Additionally, if a social media account that is offering a deal is only a few days old, chances are, it’s a scam. Fonts, colors and language in an ad or post that are off-brand from the Columbus Zoo’s typical content are also a red flag. 

The zoo warns that scammers entice potential victims with low prices in order to steal credit card, banking or other personal information. After stealing an individual’s information, scammers may sell it to other scammers, accumulate credit card charges, deplete the victim’s bank account or open loans in the victim’s name. 

To buy tickets, the zoo recommends visiting their website directly instead of clicking on links from outside sources. Users can also double check that they are on the zoo’s official social media pages by clicking on the embedded links located at the bottom of their website’s homepage.

Genuine discounts and promotions can be found on the zoo’s official website and social media pages.