Frustrated Australians are demanding answers after thousands of concert-goers were left out of a major ticket sale. Across the country, customers are reporting being greeted with a “restricted access” message before they can check out, even though they claimed they had done nothing wrong.

Australians flocked to Ticketek last week after European stars Robyn and Zara Larsson each announced shows to be held later this year. But many missed out.

A Ticketek spokesperson told Yahoo that there was “very strong demand” on the latter platform in particular.

Technical issues during high-demand ticket sales are not uncommon in Australia, and both Ticketek and Ticketmaster have come under fire for similar issues in the past, with many customers becoming furious after queuing for up to an hour and being turned away once they got to the point of purchase.

“Sorry, access is restricted” was the message shown to countless people across the country at both Larson’s pre-sale and general launch last week.

Melbourne resident Marco Varone is one of the fans who missed out on tickets to the Swedish pop star’s October show.

He told Yahoo News the experience was “very frustrating.”

Even after receiving error messages and being blocked, many more spoke out online.

“It worked for me, but now I’m sold out,” said one.

“Literally, that’s all they have. That’s all they have, so why are they so bad at selling tickets?” chimed in another.

“Me too! I’m frustrated and so upset,” a third person wrote.

Related: Ticketec defends scene as Australians leave ‘screaming’ in anger

Countless others have uploaded videos expressing their displeasure.

The comments sections of Ticketek and promoter Live Nation were also filled with fans complaining about the error message.

Many said they would think twice about using the platform again if it was not the only authorized seller available for a large event.

Similar disruptions occurred during the Australian leg of Taylor Swift’s Ellas tour, where overwhelming demand forced fans to endure marathon lines, websites repeatedly crashed, and tickets ran out within minutes, sparking frustration.

The rollout was widely described as a fiasco, with many questioning whether the ticketing system was equipped to handle demand of that scale.

A Roy Morgan spokesperson told Yahoo that Ticketec was not one of the most mistrusted brands in Australia, but was twice as distrusted as trusted in the annual Risk Monitor survey of 20,000 Australians.

Mistrust of the brand has increased in recent years and is now more distrustful than its main competitor, Ticketmaster.

Ticketek defends platform procedures

A Ticketek spokesperson defended the company’s sales procedures.

They said the platform has anti-bot security technology in place to prevent unauthorized buyers from purchasing tickets.

They argued that this was likely the reason why so many people received “restricted access” messages, citing the fact that bot protection can be triggered when fans use multiple devices or browsers at the same time.

Yahoo spoke to a number of Ticketek members who said they only use one device.

Sydney woman Marta said she received the notification from her laptop on Tuesday as she tried to buy a ticket to Robin.

Ben, from Melbourne, said he tried unsuccessfully to secure tickets for Larsson during three separate sales on both Wednesday and Thursday.

A Ticketek spokesperson said: “There was very strong demand for this event, with interest significantly exceeding supply.”

“Ticketek has strong anti-bot and security measures in place to protect the integrity of sales and ensure tickets are prioritized to genuine fans.”

If a platform underperforms, brand credibility takes a hit.

A study on e-commerce service failures found that failures in online service delivery undermine brand credibility, especially during stressful transactions, and consumer trust in platforms, especially if complaints and recovery efforts are seen as insufficient.

Research shows that consumers’ perceptions of how a company handles a service failure significantly influences satisfaction and future purchase intentions, and while poor recovery often drives people to abandon a brand, effective service recovery can help rebuild trust and further increase loyalty.

Experts also point out that trust is essential for digital transactions.

When users view a platform as untrustworthy, their confidence and repurchase intentions are significantly reduced, especially in situations that are perceived as high risk.

Ticketek’s advice for Australians on release date

• Verify your Ticketek account – Please log in or create a My Ticketek account to ensure your account’s current payment information, email, and phone number are up to date.

• Disable VPN or IP masking tools – A unique IP helps ensure that you are real and not a bot.

release date

• Bot detection is enabled – Turn off any browser extensions that may trigger bot detection.

• Join the Ticketek Lounge – Ticket Tech Lounge will open one hour prior to sale time.

• Do not refresh or close your browser – The page will update automatically.

• Use only one device – Access your presale from one browser on one device. Using multiple devices or browsers at the same time can trigger bot protection and cause you to be removed from the queue.

• Avoid multiple tabs – Opening pages in multiple tabs can cause you to lose your queue order.

• Please have your mobile phone handy – A verification code may be sent to your phone during sign-in or from your bank during payment.

• Please prepare to check out – Make sure your bank won’t block your transaction by checking your credit limit or pre-authorizing your purchase.

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