When the hottest international acts come to town, getting tickets can sometimes feel like a lottery. You can either be online at the right time and lucky enough to score a spot or two in the mosh pit or miss out completely.

If you missed out, it may be tempting to quickly snap up resale tickets if and when they pop up on social media. However, this can sometimes be a trap, with scammers posting fake tickets and swindling fans out of hundreds or thousands of dollars.

Taylor Swift ticketing scam

Recently, hundreds of Swifties got stung by a scam where fraudsters were using social media to sell fake tickets.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC’s) Scamwatch said fans lost at least $135,000 to the scam.

“This scam is a low act, seeking to take advantage of fans, many of whom are young and are desperately trying to secure a ticket to make their dream of seeing Taylor Swift live come true,” ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe said.

“Be mindful that scammers have been hacking genuine accounts to appear legitimate and are tricking trusting friends or connections into buying Taylor Swift tickets that don’t exist,” she added.

“The safest way to get legitimate tickets to The Eras Tour is by purchasing tickets from the authorised reseller, Ticketek Marketplace.”

How to spot ticketing scams

Ticketing scams generally involve someone advertising concert or sporting tickets for sale on a local social media group, such as a Facebook community group. The poster may claim they can’t go at the last minute because they’re sick and offer to sell the tickets at cost price, according to the ACCC.

However, once the buyer transfers the money to the account of the person posting the ad, the tickets never show up. Usually because they didn’t exist in the first place.

To avoid this scam, consider the following tips:

• Only buy tickets from an authorised seller (such as Ticketek).
• If you buy from someone else, take extra steps to ensure the person is real and tickets are real (though this is still risky, as people can sound legitimate).
• Find secure ways to pay for things, such as PayPal, which allows you to dispute transactions.
• Warn your friends and family about ticketing scams.

Source: ACCC.