Weird mail

[lnr]

OK, I just got this peculiar email. If I go to the page it doesn't seem to have anything at all to convince me they actually know who I am, or have any connection with Glastonbury themselves. It just asks for the title, initials and surname of my guest. Do I really want to fill this in? Has anyone else got one? [relevant bits of headers included] Actually now I double-check the original confimation email came from helpme@seetickets.com and the same IP, which is a bit more reassuring. But still, this is a completely noddy operation and I'm still not convinced I really want to go fill this in.

From: <hlimpkin@wayahead.com>
To: <lnr@lspace.org>
Subject: Glastonbury
Received: from nobody.com (host217-46-241-157.in-addr.btopenworld.com [217.46.241.157])
Message-ID: <wm44f96a2e336844cb9b15412ad43671b8@wayahead.com>
Date: Wed, 05 May 04 15:03:00 GMT Daylight Time

Dear Ms Ec Blair

With reference to your order for this years Glastonbury Festival, we would 
like to confirm the name of your guests attending.

Please click on the link below to submit the details so we can verify it
against our existing records.

http://www.seetickets.com/cs/?q=[ID censored]

Thankyou for your assistance.

Holly Limpkin

Customer Services
Seetickets.

Comments

[kaet.livejournal.com]

Way Ahead are muppets.

I used to know a fair few people who worked for them, and it's exactly the sort of half-arsed thing they'd do. They also trade under a vast variety of names, as far as I can tell (or wholly own or are owned by ... whatever). Of course, that's only half the battle, because it's also the sort of stuff that people like [the spammers who ask you for your bank details] do too.

[lnr]

I've mailed them, said they look far too dodgy, and no way am I telling them anything unless they convince me they're not and tell me why they actually need the information.

Their auto-reply is a bit more convincing.

[daneel-olivaw.livejournal.com]

"verify it against our existing records"?

If they have the data, they don't need it. If they don't have the data, why do they want it (and who are they)? I haven't received anything myself (yet) but I suspect that it's more likely to be sat in Marna's inbox than mine (since she used a domain she has control over for correspondence, as she sorted my tickets).

[marnameow.livejournal.com]

Yes I do - I just checked the 'Andrew' folder. Want me to forrard it to you?

[mpinna.livejournal.com]

I got one just the same a week ago (same person too), and happily went ahead and filled it in. Dodgy as hell I agree, but I think we've come to expect that from Glasto's setup this year.

[marnameow.livejournal.com]

I think that Somebody Screwed Up and lost half the details of names of people attending and so they need to collect them again for the personalising of tickets.

[j4.livejournal.com]

I haven't got one...

I can't believe how crap the whole operation is, though. We should be documenting this, we can write it up and tell the usual geek forums (fora?) and then hopefully get somebody clueful to bid for doing the website stuff next year. There have already been murmurings in Other Places that blackcat would be able to do a better job of it...

Unless of course they just do a giant lottery like they're threatening, which would be fairer in some ways I suppose but would prevent people from making any plans to go with groups of friends... which seems a shame.

[j4.livejournal.com]

Oh, I tell a lie, I do have one now.

FFS, though. Why make everybody fill in the details at the time on the site if they're just going to have to do it all again now?

So, what do you reckon: fill it in and say nothing? Reply and check that it's authentic, just to make the point?

[hoiho.livejournal.com]

Auction the right to the name on your second ticket?

[j4.livejournal.com]

Don't you want to go any more, then?

[hoiho.livejournal.com]

I most certainly do; it was just an idle thought.