SINGAPORE: At least S$6,000 has been lost since October to fake concert ticket scams related to K-pop girl group Blackpink's upcoming world tour in Singapore.
The police said on Thursday (Nov 20) that there were at least 11 reported cases linked to fake concert tickets from fraudsters.
The K-pop quartet will stage three shows – on Nov 28, 29 and 30 – at the National Stadium as part of their highly anticipated Deadline world tour.
The police said victims responded to advertisements or listings of concert tickets for sale on online platforms such as Telegram, Carousell, Xiaohongshu, Facebook Messenger and TikTok.
Some scammers would provide screenshots or videos of fake tickets or receipts to convince victims that the tickets were authentic.
Scammers would also claim that ticket sales were time-sensitive or limited in quantity and promise to deliver the tickets to the victims after successful payment.
When the victims said that they did not receive their concert tickets, the scammers would request additional payments by claiming that they did not receive the payments made by the victims.
The victims would realise they had been taken for a ride only when the scammers became uncontactable or did not deliver the tickets.
The police have advised the public to only purchase concert tickets from the authorised ticketing platform, Ticketmaster. They added that under the terms and conditions of the sale of Blackpink concert tickets in Singapore, the tickets cannot be transferred or resold.
Those who are found to have purchased resale tickets will be turned away from the concert at the Singapore Sports Hub, where the National Stadium is located, with no refund.
Tickets would be issued to buyers only through their Ticketmaster accounts, typically around two weeks before the event. The police said Ticketmaster will never issue tickets through e-mail.
In line with policies under Meta, Facebook Marketplace does not allow content that promotes the buying, selling or trading of event tickets. The police have also reached out to platforms such as Carousell, Facebook Marketplace and TikTok to take down listings of resale tickets.
They advise the public to download the ScamShield app to protect themselves against scams. The public can also report fraudulent advertisements to the social media and e-commerce platforms.
To learn how to stay safe from scams, go to www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield helpline on 1799. - The Straits Times/ANN
