How to catch a scammer: Music fans hit back at fraudsters charging exorbitant prices for sold-out concert tickets
- Many devastated Billie Eilish fans missed out on concert tickets for shows
- Scammers with fake Facebook profiles are making money from desperate fans
- One person lost $160 after they bought tickets in good faith from a scammer
- Fans are fighting back by exposing scammers and the common tricks they use
Scammers using fake Facebook profiles are preying on desperate music fans who missed out on tickets to concerts.
Fans were devastated when tickets sold out almost instantly after going on sale for rising Australian star Billie Eilish, 17.
The Facebook events for Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle shows were littered with posts from suspected scammers looking to make a quick buck from fans.
One fed-up fan showed how scammers operate by revealing details of a Facebook conversation with a woman named ‘Rachael’.
Student Ima Zanjani showed fellow fans that scammers can be caught out if they don’t keep their story straight or pressure you into using non-refundable payment methods
Wyatt Cooper (pictured) lost $160 after she mistakenly bought tickets from a scammer called ‘Rachael’
Facebook events for Billie Eilish’s (pictured) shows in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle shows are littered with posts from scammers looking to make a quick buck from fans
Student Ima Zanjani, 18, couldn’t get tickets and spoke to eight suspected scammers before giving up.
‘If it’s too good to be true, it probably is,’ Ms Zanjani said.
Ms Zanjani showed fellow fans ‘how to catch a scammer’ by posting screenshots of a conversation with a suspected scammer in the event page.
She said if someone insists on non-refundable payment methods, doesn’t reveal their name or doesn’t show a ticket receipt, it’s likely to be a scam.
Childcare worker Wyatt Cooper, 24, lost $160 after she mistakenly bought tickets from a scammer called ‘Rachael’.
‘Rachael’ sent Ms Wyatt screenshots to prove they had tickets and pressured her to quickly pay by cardless cash because they ‘need the money for rent that’s due tonight’.
Ms Cooper paid but ‘Rachael’ never sent the tickets and deactivated their account.
‘It’s disgusting how people go out of their own way to scam people,’ Ms Wyatt said.
She has reported the incident to police but they haven’t found the scammer since cardless cash payments are untraceable.
Ms Cooper paid but ‘Rachael’ never sent the tickets and deactivated their Facebook account (messages pictured)
Ben Williams, 18, bought tickets from a re-seller after messaging three suspected scammers.
He is annoyed that nothing is being done by organisers to stop scammers.
‘The event page should manage the scammers. It should be regulated so no one is taken advantage of,’ he said.
It cost him $270 for a ticket that originally sold for $70.
He knows he could still be scammed be if the seller decides to use the ticket for themselves but said it’s ‘a risk I was willing to take’.
Student Ben Williams (pictured), 18, bought tickets from a re-seller after messaging three suspected scammers