TWO Taylor Swift fans were swindled out of £1k after being sold fake concert tickets by scammers.
The victims are among 299 reports of ticket scamming incidents reported in Northern Ireland over the past 12 months which amount to an eye-watering £300,000.
This week the PSNI has released the figures, that are found within data from Action Fraud, which shows £6.7m was lost to this type of crime across the UK.
In Northern Ireland the total reported losses came in at £291,344.36 with 299 reports made.
The incidents realting to Taylor Swift concerts, were among the most recent reported in the North.
One fan of the US popstar thought they'd bought tickets to see her live for £400 via an online Buy and Sell page.
They were then asked to pay a further sum of money for a change of name, which they did, but once all the money was transferred, the buyer was blocked by the seller.
The tickets never arrived and the person was swindled out of their money.
The exact same thing happened to another person last month, who paid over £600 for what they thought were Taylor Swift tickets.
With summer gigs and festivals fast approaching, PSNI Chief Superintendent Gerard Pollock, who is the Chair of the ScamwiseNI Partnership, is urging people to be vigilant when buying tickets.
“We’ve had reports of people buying tickets through social media platforms, thinking they’re getting the real deal only to find out the money they’ve shelled out is to someone who isn’t genuine, and the tickets they’ve paid hundreds of pounds for never existed in the first place,” he said.
“With some big names on tour this summer, demand is always high for those concerts which have in reality been sold out months in advance.
“Avid fans are being exploited, often by organised criminals, in the hope of seeing their heroes live."
Ticket fraud often involves the use of images and graphics taken from genuine sellers to make fake websites look real.
Scammers also often make contact through social media.
“I would also urge parents buying tickets for children and young adults going to a concert, and those who make a last-minute decision to go to a concert, to be really cautious when buying your ticket,” Chf Supt Pollock said.
“Too often, we see reports of tickets that don’t materialise at all, or are just screenshots of genuine tickets that won’t get you any farther than the ticket barrier.”
He added: "The safest way to ensure tickets bought are genuine is to purchase them from the authorised ticket seller or authorised re-seller.
“We'd also advise against buying tickets from other sources, such as third parties because you can never be sure of the validity and authenticity of the tickets.
“Ticket fraud is a continuing problem and fraudsters will try everything to lure people into falling for their scams.
“It is vital people take care when buying tickets.
“Follow our Stop. Check. Report. advice and recognise the signs of ticket fraud before getting caught out and remember, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is."
