Pickpockets and scams in Italy: what’s real and how to avoid them

Short answer

Petty theft — pickpocketing and bag-snatching — is the main risk for visitors in Italy, mostly on crowded public transport, at big train and metro stations, in city centres and around major sights. Keep a cross-body bag in front, don’t leave your phone on café tables, and say no to ‘free’ bracelets, petitions and ticket touts. Carry photo ID and keep it secure. Buy tickets from the attraction’s official website or EmweGo — we take responsibility for every ticket sold through us — never from street touts or look-alike sites, and take taxis from official ranks or apps. In an emergency call 112.

Checked 2026-09-24 · Italy · Safety

	At a glance
Hotspots	Crowded metro and buses, big stations (e.g. Roma Termini, Milano Centrale, Firenze SMN, Napoli Centrale), trains, queues, busy squares
Common tricks	‘Free’ bracelets, petitions, pigeon feed, ‘sold-out’ ticket touts, staged crowding at metro doors, fake helpers
Protect	Cross-body bag in front · photo ID on you, kept secure · phone off the table · nothing valuable in a backpack
Tickets	The attraction’s official site or EmweGo — never street touts or look-alike domains; Colosseum tickets are named and ID is checked
Taxis	Official ranks, radio taxis or apps — never touts at arrivals
After a theft	Safe place → block cards → phone/SIM → police report → consulate if your passport is gone
Emergency	112 — free; officially also without a SIM or credit, coverage permitting

Where it happens

Watch out

Crowded metro and buses

Verified 2026-09-24

The busiest lines and buses to headline sights are the classic spot. Keep your bag closed and don’t hold your phone at the carriage door.

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Watch out

Stations and trains

Verified 2026-09-24

Station concourses and trains — especially bags left on luggage racks. Sit where you can see your suitcase.

Examples: Roma Termini, Milano Centrale, Firenze SMN, Napoli Centrale

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Watch out

Queues and famous squares

Lines at the Colosseum, Vatican, Duomo and busy piazzas are where distractions work best.

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Traveller tip

Is it really unsafe?

UK travel advice describes crime levels as generally low, with more petty crime in city centres and at major attractions. In traveller discussions, most people say ordinary big-city caution is enough.

Community: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

The street tricks to recognise

Watch out

‘Free’ friendship bracelet

Someone ties a bracelet on your wrist, then demands money. Keep your hands to yourself and walk on.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Watch out

Petitions and clipboards

A ‘signature for charity’ while someone else goes for your bag or asks for a donation.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Watch out

Pigeon feed near cathedrals

Seeds pressed into your hand in front of a cathedral, then a demand for payment.

Reported at: Piazza del Duomo, Milan
Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Watch out

‘The terrace is sold out’ ticket touts

Touts near monuments claim official tickets are gone and sell overpriced ‘skip-the-line’ entries or audio guides. Check the attraction’s official site or EmweGo first.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Last Supper: how to book →

Watch out

Staged crowding and ‘broken escalator’

A group blocks the metro door or steers you to a lift ‘because the escalator is broken’ — the crush is the distraction. Venice police run a visitor campaign on exactly this at Santa Lucia, Mestre and San Marco.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Polizia di Stato · Questura di Venezia (visitor campaign) ↗

Watch out

The three-cups game

Verified 2026-09-24

A street ‘game’ of guessing which cup hides the ball, with accomplices ‘winning’ to draw you in — you lose, and a crowd forms around your bag. Police in Milan, Venice and Rome have acted against it in 2026. Don’t stop to play or watch.

Polizia di Stato · Questura di Milano (shell game) ↗ · Polizia di Stato · Questura di Venezia (visitor campaign) ↗ · Polizia di Stato · Questura di Roma (tourist-centre checks) ↗

Watch out

Look-alike ticket websites

Verified 2026-09-24

Some sites resell tickets at a markup or imitate official ones. The Vatican Museums say tickets.museivaticani.va is their only official online shop and warn about similar domains; Colosseum tickets are issued in your name and ID is checked at the entrance. Buy on the official site or from a seller that stands behind the booking, such as EmweGo.

Musei Vaticani · official ticket site ↗ · Colosseum · official ticketing ↗

Watch out

Taxi touts at arrivals

Verified 2026-09-24

Don’t accept rides from people approaching you in the arrivals hall. Use an officially licensed taxi — roof sign, company name and number on the side — from a rank, by phone or in an app.

Rome airport transport →

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Watch out

Unsolicited ‘helpers’

At ticket machines or stations, don’t hand tickets, cards or documents to a random helper.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

How to protect yourself

Good to know

Bag in front, zipped

A cross-body or belt bag worn in front; nothing valuable in a backpack or back pocket.

UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Good to know

Passport and photo ID

Verified 2026-09-24

EU/EEA/Swiss citizens can use a passport or national ID card. Non-EU visitors should carry the passport and any visa or residence proof — police can ask for both. Named train and museum tickets need valid ID too. Keep it in a zipped inner pocket; a copy helps the consulate but doesn’t replace it.

Your Europe · EU citizens’ travel documents ↗ · Normattiva · D.Lgs. 286/1998 art. 6 ↗ · UK FCDO · Italy safety and security ↗

Good to know

Phone off the table

Don’t leave your phone on a café table, especially near stations.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Good to know

Nothing visible in the car

Leave nothing in a parked car, even for a short stop.

Source: Community observation — traveller discussions, not an official statistic

Good to know

Keep essentials offline

Save tickets, your hotel address, insurance and consulate contacts offline, plus a photo of your passport page, before you set off.

Italy Essentials →

Cards, bookings and phone scams

Watch out

Pay only on the booking platform

Verified 2026-09-24

A common holiday-rental fraud moves the chat off the platform and asks for a bank transfer or prepaid-card payment. Keep messages and payment inside the platform or your booking account — police also warn about fake Booking.com links.

Polizia di Stato · Questura di Pisa (holiday-rental fraud) ↗ · Polizia Postale · fraud brochure ↗

Watch out

Calls that look like your bank

Verified 2026-09-24

Caller ID can be faked to show a bank or public office number. Never share codes or move money on an incoming call — hang up and call the number on your bank’s own site or card.

Polizia di Stato · Questura di Genova (caller-ID spoofing) ↗

Good to know

ATMs: check the slot, cover the PIN

Verified 2026-09-24

Skimmers and hidden cameras exist. Use ATMs inside banks where you can, check that the card slot is firmly fixed and cover the keypad. If a card is swallowed, block it in your bank’s app.

Polizia di Stato · Questura di Siena (skimming) ↗

Good to know

QR codes and links

Partially verified · 2026-09-24

Before paying through a QR code (for parking, say) or a link in a message, check that the address is the operator’s real site. If a sticker looks stuck on top, use the machine or the official app instead.

Good to know

Euros or your currency?

Partially verified · 2026-09-24

Card machines and ATMs sometimes offer to charge you in your home currency. You can always choose euros and let your own bank convert — compare before you confirm.

If it happens

Good to know

Emergency: call 112

Verified 2026-09-24

112 is free. Italian official guidance says it can be dialled without a SIM, without credit and from a locked phone — but coverage and the device still matter, so use any working phone you can.

Prefettura di Genova · 112 NUE ↗ · European Commission · 112 (SIM caveat) ↗ · Ministry of the Interior · 112 ↗

Good to know

Block cards right away

Block each card with its own issuer — in the app or on the number from the bank’s site — before anything else. Then mark your phone as lost and suspend the SIM.

First hours: step by step →

Good to know

Report it to the police

Verified 2026-09-24

File a report (denuncia) with the Carabinieri or police — insurers and consulates usually ask for it. For a theft or loss by unknown persons you can start it online with Denuncia vi@ Web — then finish it at the station you chose within 48 hours.

Carabinieri · Denuncia vi@ Web ↗ · Carabinieri · Denuncia vi@ Web privacy notice (48 h) ↗

Good to know

Lost passport: contact your consulate

A police report is not a travel document. Ask your embassy or consulate how to get an emergency travel document; a photo of the passport won’t be enough to fly.

Consulates and emergency passports →

Good to know

Lost, not stolen?

Trains, metros and airports each run their own lost property — Trenitalia and Italo use FindMyLost, Rome’s metro has one desk at EUR Fermi.

Lost property by operator →

Official ticket channels

Sight	Official channel	Rules that stop resale
Colosseum, Forum, Palatine	ticketing.colosseo.it (from colosseo.it) · MyColosseum app	Named ticket, ID at the entrance; one name change allowed; accredited-partner list published
Vatican Museums	tickets.museivaticani.va — the only official online site	Named ticket with ID checks; the Museums warn about look-alike domains
Uffizi	tickets.uffizi.it (from uffizi.it)	Named tickets; ID for reduced and special tickets
Accademia (David)	B-Ticket — the museum’s only official online channel	ID for reduced tickets
Last Supper	cenacolovinciano.vivaticket.it · +39 02 92800360	Named, non-transferable; ID at collection; extra tickets often released Wednesdays at noon
Pompeii	Vivaticket via pompeiisites.org, or the ticket offices inside the site	Named PDF ticket; staff may check ID
St Mark’s Basilica	tickets.basilicasanmarco.it	Named + ID; tickets from unauthorised sellers are not valid
Doge’s Palace	muve.vivaticket.it (from palazzoducale.visitmuve.it)	ID for reduced and special tickets
Venice Access Fee	cda.ve.it · cda.veneziaunica.it	2026 trial ended 26 July; no payment needed until the Comune sets new dates

A reseller isn’t automatically a scam — it may sell a real ticket or a tour at a different price. Start from the attraction’s own site, or book through EmweGo: we take responsibility for every ticket and tour sold through us. Checked 24 Sep 2026 on each official site.

Quick answers

Is Italy safe for tourists?

Yes for most visitors. UK travel advice describes crime levels as generally low; pickpocketing and bag-snatching are the main risk, concentrated in city centres, on crowded transport, at big stations and at major sights.

Where are pickpockets most common in Italy?

On crowded metros and buses, at big train and metro stations, on trains, and in queues and squares at major sights.

What is the bracelet scam in Italy?

Someone ties a ‘free’ bracelet on your wrist and then demands money. Keep your hands to yourself and walk away.

Should I carry my passport in Italy?

Carry a valid official ID that fits your status: EU/EEA/Swiss citizens can use a national ID card; non-EU visitors should keep the passport and any visa or residence proof with them — police can ask for both. A copy is a back-up, not a replacement.

What should I do if I’m pickpocketed in Italy?

Get somewhere safe and call 112 if you’re in danger, block your cards, and report the theft to the Carabinieri or police (you can start online with Denuncia vi@ Web). For a lost passport contact your consulate.

Go deeper in our guides

Guide

Pickpockets and scams in Italy: what’s real and how to avoid them

Where it happens

Crowded metro and buses

Stations and trains

Queues and famous squares

Is it really unsafe?

The street tricks to recognise

‘Free’ friendship bracelet

Petitions and clipboards

Pigeon feed near cathedrals

‘The terrace is sold out’ ticket touts

Staged crowding and ‘broken escalator’

The three-cups game

Look-alike ticket websites

Taxi touts at arrivals

Unsolicited ‘helpers’

How to protect yourself

Bag in front, zipped

Passport and photo ID

Phone off the table

Nothing visible in the car

Keep essentials offline

Cards, bookings and phone scams

Pay only on the booking platform

Calls that look like your bank

ATMs: check the slot, cover the PIN

QR codes and links

Euros or your currency?

If it happens

Emergency: call 112

Block cards right away

Report it to the police

Lost passport: contact your consulate

Lost, not stolen?

Official ticket channels

Quick answers

Go deeper in our guides

Italy Essentials: money & safety

Rome: useful tips

Milan: useful tips

Naples: useful tips

Florence: useful tips

Venice: useful tips

Related answers