Pokemon Company In Japan Demands ID Checks To Fight Scalpers

Pokémon scalping in Japan has prompted The Pokémon Company to consider requiring government ID checks before trading card game products can be sold. My Number Cards will be used to authenticate Players Club accounts before access to lottery systems for online card sales. Beginning in August 2026, customers will use a third-party service to scan the chip in a My Number Card using a smartphone. The process uses a “User Authentication Electronic Certificate” without storing the customer’s unique number. This authentication will be required for purchasing certain TCG products from the Pokémon Center Japan website and for entering Japan-based tournaments. Applying for a My Number Card can take one to two months, so customers are encouraged to apply early to continue participating in lotteries and tournaments.

"The Pokémon Company (TPC) has announced (via ) it's considering requiring government ID card checks before cards can be sold to customers. In a statement posted to the official Japanese site, the company explains Japan's My Number Cards will be required to authenticate Players Club accounts before entry even to the lottery systems which are currently used when selling cards online."

"Starting in August 2026, The Pokémon Company wants to use a system whereby customers employ a third-party service that will scan the chip in the governmental My Number Card (a voluntary photographic ID system that also doubles up as the equivalent to a social security card) on a smartphone to authenticate an official Pokémon account. Using the "User Authentication Electronic Certificate," but without storing the customer's unique number, this level of security will be required for both buying certain TCG products from the Japanese Pokémon Center website and entering Japan-based tournaments."

"The statement makes note of the lengthy process of applying for a My Number Card, which can apparently take one to two months to arrive, and suggests that customers who want to continue entering the lotteries to buy PTCG products or enter tournaments from August should apply as soon as possible."

"But these are the distances The Pokémon Company is looking to go to try to stem the onslaught of scalpers who are still evading all the current systems and checks to make buying the cards (in most countries around the world) almost impossible for legitimate customers."

Read at Kotaku