Today-July 6
At least 462 victims have fallen victim to a scam involving the sale of concert tickets, with total losses amounting to at least S$480,000 since January this year. The police said in a press statement on Thursday (July 6) that they have seen a resurgence of this scam variant, as more popular international acts are coming to Singapore to hold their concerts. Victims would usually try to buy the tickets from scammers through e-commerce or social media platforms, and would contact the scammers through their in-app messaging function. After receiving payment, the scammers would delay the delivery of the tickets, and then become uncontactable. At least 462 victims have fallen victim to a scam involving the sale of concert tickets, with total losses amounting to at least S$480,000 since January this year. In a press statement on Thursday (July 6), the police said that they have seen a resurgence of this scam variant, with popular international acts such as British band Coldplay and American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift coming to Singapore to perform.
“The police would like to remind the public to be discerning when shopping online, especially when purchasing concert tickets from online third-party resellers,” they added. The police did not mention how many concerts are involved but screenshots they provided showed acts such as Taylor Swift, South Korean girl groups Twice and IVE featuring in the scammers’ advertisements. In this scam variant, the victims would come across advertisements for concert tickets on e-commerce or social media platforms such as Carousell, Xiaohongshu, Facebook, Telegram and Twitter. They would then approach the scammers through the individual platform’s in-app messaging function. When asked for proof of authenticity of the tickets, the scammers would provide screenshots and videos of fake tickets or receipts. The scammers would claim that ticket sales were time-sensitive or limited in quantity, and urge victims into making payment quickly, usually through virtual credits such as iTunes, PayNow or bank transfers. They would also promise to email or transfer the tickets to the victims’ Ticketmaster account after successful payment. Read more at: https://www.todayonline.
