Over the next few months, several events such as Ultra Singapore 2019, 2019 International Champions Cup, as well as concerts featuring popular international artists such as Jay Chou, JJ Lin, Westlife, Shawn Mendes, 5566 and Backstreet Boys will be held in Singapore. From January to April 2019, the Police have received more than 98 reports of e-commerce scams involving sales of concert and event tickets. The victims either did not receive the tickets or received invalid tickets after payments were made.
Adopt the following measures to prevent yourself from getting scammed:
- Don’t be impulsive – Be wary of online advertisements of concert/show tickets at cheap prices that sound too good to be true! Do not buy on impulse. Read the reviews of the seller before committing to a purchase.
- Don’t believe – Scammers may use a local bank account or provide a copy of a NRIC/driver’s licence to make you believe that they are genuine sellers. Do not fall for it!
- Don’t give – As you are dealing with strangers, avoid making payments or deposits in advance. Try to use shopping platforms/arrangements that release your payment to the seller only upon receiving the item. Alternatively, arrange to meet the seller and pay only after collecting your tickets. Bear in mind that the tickets may be invalid upon entry as they are duplicated tickets. You are therefore advised to purchase only from authorised sellers.
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