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The new football trading card scam
- Poudre Press Staff
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Three days ago, a new scam appeared around Kansas City, the appearance of fake Travis Kelce autographed cards. These cards have a QR code on the back to “check the cards authenticity.” When you scan this QR code to check if it's real, they steal your information. So how did this begin? Some scammers realized that whenever people come across a QR code, they usually scan it without thinking twice. Then, they applied this to trading cards with fake Travis Kelce signatures, targeted at people in Kansas City that are more likely to be fans of Travis Kelce. This card would come in the form of a package from Ebay, and has very realistic packaging. One of the things that makes this so real is the packaging. This packaging includes Ebay’s usually reputable “Authenticity Guarantee" which is for trading card orders over 250$. These scammers also make the card look very real, looking like it is straight from one of the most reputable trading card companies out there, Panini. The card even has a magnetic holder and a sticker wrapping from Panini, which would definitely appear on a real card. On the back, there is a QR code, which promptly takes your information once you scan it.
Mark Moberly was one of the people targeted in this scam. Mark does real estate and development around the Kansas City area, and suddenly received a package. The scammers had gotten his address and name and sent the package to him from a “real” address, and it “looks pretty official, this is my name and my address,” Moberly said. He also said that nothing about the package looked off, and opened it up. Inside, he found the usual packaging that you would see if you bought a high end card like this: Ebay’s Authenticity Guarantee packaging, and the real looking Travis Kelce autograph in a magnetic holder. On the back of the magnetic holder, there was a QR code to scan. Thankfully, Mark stopped himself before he could scan it, but said “I bet 9/10 people that get this scan it” This was also during the holidays season, to make the scam even more believable.
Trading card scams are hardly new, especially on sites like Ebay. Usually, scammers sell fake cards on Ebay, posing as real cards that are way lower than the regular price. But a scam like this stuck out to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, stating that “We’ve never taken a report on this particular method of scamming, this shows how new it is.” The sheriff’s office also said that “Tech experts warn that QR codes can be especially dangerous because people often trust them without thinking twice.” Mark Moberly said that the experience opened his eyes to how convincing the scam was and how easily it could work on others. “Be cautious, be cautious when you get an email, be cautious when you get something you didn’t order, be cautious when you're scanning or using any electronic device, because the more I dig into it the scarier it gets” he said.
Sources
YouTube, YouTube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkV0g4N4Y34. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
Jackson, Malik. Fake Travis Kelce Trading Cards Used in New QR Code SCAM: Kansas City Authorities, 10 Jan. 2026, www.kron4.com/news/national/fake-travis-kelce-trading-cards-used-in-new-qr-code-scam-kansas-city-authorities/.
Fake Travis Kelce Trading Cards Used in New QR Code SCAM – News10 ABC, 9 Jan. 2026, www.news10.com/video/fake-travis-kelce-trading-cards-used-in-new-qr-code-scam/11415263/.
Noah Lewis is a 10th grader at the white and blue school of Poudre high school. This is his first year in Poudre Press. He is also an avid wrestler, who wrestles year round. Other hobbies he enjoys include mountain biking, collecting sports memorabilia/cards, camping, and playing video games.
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