Measures taken to prevent ticket scams
To avoid repeats of ticket scams, and with upcoming concerts here by global artists, the police have been constantly reminding the public to buy tickets from only authorised sellers.
K-pop group Blackpink will be performing at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Feb 15, while Maroon 5 will be performing at the National Stadium on March 7.
This will be followed by John Mayer at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on April 1 and Ed Sheeran at the National Stadium on April 26.
The New Paper reported in October that ticket verification measures will be carried out at Sheeran's concert to prevent touting or victims being scammed.
Fans will have their names printed on the tickets and checked at the National Stadium's entrances.
More than 200 reports of e-commerce scams involving concert and event ticket sales worth at least $89,000 were received by the police last year.
Victims had reported either receiving invalid tickets or nothing at all.
The police also found that 80 per cent of all e-commerce scams in the first half of last year took place on online marketplace Carousell. The amount involved was almost $550,000.
To protect users from scams, Carousell had launched CarouPay, an integrated payment system.
Funds will be frozen and held by Carousell during a dispute between the buyer and seller, until a resolution is met.
The police encourages the public to use payment systems like CarouPay to protect themselves from e-commerce scams.
Those who wish to report scams should contact the police on 1800-255-0000 or www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
More information on scams can be found on 1800-722-6688 or www.scamalert.sg.
Tips on buying concert tickets
- Check if sellers are verified and have positive reviews.
- Make sure you have all the necessary information about the product.
- Opt for safer payment services on consumer marketplace.
- Do not fall into the trap of sellers who provide you with their local bank account or identity card details.
- Avoid making deposits or payments in advance.
Source: Singapore Police Force, Carousell
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