Man Hacks Woman’s Southwest Account And Cancels Her Trip. Then He Uses The Flight Credit To Fly Dallas To Orlando On Her Dime: ‘Give Me My Refund’

A woman claims that someone hacked into her Southwest Airlines account, stole her flight credits, and went on a trip from Dallas to Orlando. Now, she claims the airline is telling her they can’t refund her because the “money’s already spent.”

Across a series of videos, TikTok user Papilove (@papilove13) explains what happened—and why she’s currently seeking a refund and an explanation from the airline.

“Southwest has a hacker…who is canceling—hacking into people’s accounts, somehow finding their passwords and their usernames, canceling their flights, and then transferring the flight credit into his name, and then going and flying wherever on their money,” the TikToker states.

From Dallas To Orlando With Stolen Flight Credits

According to the TikToker, she has evidence that an individual, whom she names but whom BroBible could not verify, “flew from Dallas to Orlando on Aug. 26 with my money.”

“He canceled my family of four and used our money,” the TikToker details. “I had to repurchase my tickets, repay for them.”

To make matters worse, Papilove says that Southwest Airlines is refusing to compensate her.

“Now Southwest is telling me, ‘Well, the money’s already gone. He’s already used it; he’s already flown. There’s no money there to reimburse you with,’” she shares.

The TikToker is now calling on Southwest to not only refund her but to fix the problem so that it does not happen to others.

“You guys need to figure out what’s going on and how [the hacker is] so easily able to hack into your account, your Southwest app or whatever, and get into so many people’s accounts,” she states.

“I’m sure he must know someone who works there. Or, you have a data breach that has not been known,” she adds later in the video. “So, fix the situation. Please, get two-factor authentication so this does not continue to happen to people, and fix the problem.”

Can Your Southwest Flight Credits Get Stolen?

This TikToker is far from the only person who claims that their Southwest flight credits were stolen by a hacker.

On Reddit, a user claimed that someone hacked into their account, canceled their flights, then booked another flight under a name they didn’t recognize. Thankfully, they were able to call Southwest, get the flight canceled, and have their booking/points returned.

The Better Business Bureau page for Southwest Airlines also contains several complaints from users who claim that their accounts were hacked into and their rewards points were stolen. Some of these posts have updates claiming that they were able to get their points back.

How this happens in the first place is unknown. In one user’s story, they claim that the tickets were booked without a Rapid Rewards number, indicating that it is not necessarily a fault with the Rapid Rewards system.

Instead, it’s possible that hackers are simply trying out leaked passwords and known email addresses. From there, they can see if any match with a Southwest account. After that, they can transfer credits and book flights.

What Should You Do If You Southwest Account Gets Hacked?

In a story from The Points Guy about a similar situation, the author says they were able to get their points back. They did this by contacting Southwest Airlines and the various services the hacker accessed with their account.

However, the writer was told that the return of their points was a “gesture of goodwill and one-time exception”—not standard practice.

In fact, according to the article, Southwest Airlines’ own guidelines say that the airline is “not responsible for unauthorized access to a member’s account and will not replace stolen points or awards.”

So, if you’re in this situation, it may be impossible for you to receive a refund. The only way to manage the situation, then, is by enabling multi-factor authentication with Southwest Airlines. One can also use a strong password that is utilized solely for their Southwest Airlines account.

For her part, the TikToker writes in a comment that they are pursuing a refund through their bank.

Should Flight Tickets Be Transferable?

In the comments section, some users claimed that this sort of theft was common across the airline industry. Others shared their advice for the TikToker.

“And this is why tickets should NOT be transferable to any other person! No exceptions,” wrote a user.

“All airlines are struggling with fraud. Wish people would put that much energy into doing good. Would be a different world,” offered another.

“Submit a complaint with your state AG,” stated a third.

The TikToker wrote in the comments section that she has filed a complaint with the FBI. She also stated that if she does not receive a resolution from Southwest, she will consider pressing charges against the individual.

BroBible reached out to Southwest Airlines via email and Papilove via TikTok direct message and comment.