As thousands of IMEX America 2024 attendees head to Las Vegas this week, Apple’s iOS App Store is making two apps available to them. One of them is the official IMEX application developed by ExpoPlatform.
The second app, known as the “IMEX USA Networking” app, was initially labeled a “scam” by IMEX in emails to attendees and in an online statement, which has since been deleted. The app has also been removed.
IMEX chief executive Carina Bauer told Skift Meetings the launch of the app was “misleading rather than malicious”. IMEX also confirmed to Skift Meetings that no data breach had occurred.
This unofficial app comes from an event technology company called Sarcon.
Skift Meetings contacted Sarcon CEO Jaichander Ramesh, who will be attending IMEX this week. “We immediately removed the apps as requested by IMEX,” he said in a private message on LinkedIn. “We clearly marked the app as ‘unofficial’ to avoid confusion that it was a scam.”
The iOS App Store description reads: “This is an unofficial web application created specifically to facilitate connections between IMEX attendees for personal and professional purposes.”
Ramesh said the aim is to help attendees connect at IMEX as only buyers can use the networking features on the official app. “At IMEX, most attendees don’t have the means to network. Only buyer attendees have access to the network on the official app. Many attendees may be smaller event professionals who may not have the means to network .whether it’s a partnership, a job, or a rideshare.
The company included more information about the unofficial app’s intentions in the app’s Apple iOS App Store description. “While IMEX provides excellent tools for networking between attendees and exhibitors, the app also provides attendees with additional opportunities to connect with each other for job opportunities or partnerships, etc. Please note that the The App is non-commercial, independent from IMEX, developed solely to enhance the attendee experience and has no official endorsement or affiliation with IMEX.
IMEX attendees’ confusion
On Sunday, users who wanted to download the IMEX app from the iOS store were given two options with very similar icons. When searching for “IMEX”, the first thing that comes up is the unofficial “IMEX USA Networking App”.
The app design uses the same colors and style as IMEX.
Once users download the app, they are prompted for their login password, and a “Forgot your password?” option results in a field prompting “Enter your registration email.”
The red note reads: “If you register using this email, an invitation email will be sent.” Skift Meetings entered an email address but did not receive an email confirmation or reset option.
Ramesh said the app’s login feature “requires re-registration, and each user is given a unique alphanumeric password that has nothing to do with the IMEX incident. For “forgot password,” users only have to register on our unofficial app You will receive the voucher later. He said that the login function is linked to a “separate registration page” that is not yet “live”. Regarding the email password recovery option, Ramesh said, “We do not store the email ID entered at this stage.”
IMEX launched the official app two weeks ago and shared an article on LinkedIn promoting the app. It’s unclear when the unofficial app will be launched.
Ramesh said this is the first time Sarcon has created an “unofficial” app for any event.
What is Sarcon?
Sarcon is an event technology provider founded in 2017 by former Intel, Oracle and Kellogg alumni, according to its website. The company lists Delaware as its headquarters. However, in the Skift Meetings Event Tech Directory, The company claims to be headquartered in Bangalore, India, and has 45 employees.
Sarcon is not participating in IMEX America 2024 and does not appear to have participated in any IMEX events yet.
