Revolut has issued an urgent announcement. Be especially careful ahead of August 1st

The holidays are a time for big concerts and festivals, which has also increased the activity of scammers selling fake tickets to events. Despite warnings to Taylor Swift fans ahead of the artist’s tour this year, Revolut has confirmed increase in fraud reported by clients from Poland (by 52%) in the last 2 weeks preceding the concerts in Warsaw (1, 2 and 3 August).

Taylor Swift fans are being fooled like children

According to Revolut data, the amounts swindled by ticket fraudsters in the last week reached average 706 PLN. The highest amount recorded in recent days (last Friday) that Taylor Swift fans have donated to scammers amounted to over PLN 1,566.

According to Revolut, many ticket scams were initiated on social media91% of them were scams initiated on FacebookThe victims of ticket fraud were most often young people aged 17-24 (30%) and 25-34 (30%).

Scammers use two psychological mechanisms against Taylor Swift fans. First, fear of missing out a once in a lifetime opportunity to see a concert. Secondly, time pressure and a limited number of tickets that sell out quickly.

The thought that someone else could buy the ticket in a matter of seconds can be an impulsive decision. However, buyers need to be aware of the telltale signs of a scam before they hand over their money to a scammer.

– warns Dave Eborne, Head of Fraud Operations at Revolut.

Revolut warns Taylor Swift fans from Poland and indicates what they are most common tactics of ticket fraudstersh:

• no possibility of meeting in person: they never live in the same city where the concert is held, they prefer to make a transaction online rather than meet the buyer in person or at the concert venue,
• pages without verification: to deceive victims, criminals mainly use unofficial websites or social media platforms where there is no verification,
• bargain prices: in some cases, criminals sell fake tickets at very attractive prices, trying to convince victims to make a quick decision and buy so as not to miss such a good opportunity.
• FOMO effect: scammers pressure victims to pay quickly, otherwise the ticket will be sold to someone else, pretending to have many interested buyers, diverting attention from warning signs that could raise doubts.
• suspicious profiles: Scammers’ social media profiles often have only a few friends and little interaction, or are completely private.

Revolut recommends that music festival and concert goers they used trusted sites when purchasing tickets and avoid unknown sellers who may turn out to be fraudsters.

According to Revolut, shopping fraud remains the most common type of fraud worldwide, accounting for 63% of all frauds reported by Revolut customers in 2023