As die-hard Swifties scramble for last-minute tickets to three sold-out Dublin concerts, some desperate fans are being targetted by unscrupulous scammers across social media.
Demand for last-minute seats and resales dramatically outstrips supply. 500,000 people pre-registered for Taylor Swift’s Irish gigs last year but only 150,000 fans will attend the shows in the Aviva this weekend.
Despite the low supply, social media pages seem to be flooded with ads for tickets to the shows.
Prime Time set up a profile on Facebook and posted in a public group called ‘Taylor Swift Buy and Sell Dublin, UK and Europe’ which has more than 50,000 members.
Within seconds of pressing send on the appeal to buy tickets the laptop was pinging with alerts.
“Message me I have tickets”, “I have four tickets”, “just want to get rid of them at a low price…don’t want them to go to waste.”
In the space of an hour, there were more than 50 comments from accounts all offering to sell tickets.
None of the alleged sellers offered to meet in person and when asked for proof most sent what appeared to be bogus screenshots of alleged digital tickets. In one instance, the date of the show was incorrect. In another, the word ‘seat’ was misspelled, as was the name of the seller.
One refused to send any proof, saying that such images were being taken and re-used by scammers. Another profile insisted they were not a scam. “Don’t be scared you’re save (sic) with me.”
All had a reason for their supposed sale. One said that her father had died so she could no longer travel. Another blamed her husband for cancelling their plans.
Most of the profiles appeared to have photographs dating back a number of years, but the pages had few if any friends and no personal details.
Facebook has said it takes the safety and security of its community seriously and “encourages everyone to create a strong password, enable two factor authentication and to be suspicious of emails or messages asking for personal details.”
It added that fraudulent activity is not allowed on its platforms, and it is continually investing in new technologies to tackle “this industry-wide issue.”
Alleged sellers insisted on payment via Paypal before transferring the tickets through the Ticketmaster app. At the time of the post, Ticketmaster had not opened the transfer option, so such a sale would have been impossible.
Sellers also requested using the ‘Friends and Family’ option in Paypal which is not covered by the company’s buyer’s protection.
Earlier this week, Bank of Ireland warned fans of scams in the run up to the shows and urged them to “act Swiftly” if they thought they’d been targetted.
Purchasing from strangers online on an unverifiable platform is clearly risky but desperate fans are being exploited in the clamour for Swift tickets.
Amy Raymond from Bray, Co Wicklow, paid €270 to a scammer after seeing a post from a profile selling tickets on a popular, public Facebook group.
“I saw somebody posting saying that they couldn’t make it to the concert and they were selling their two tickets, so I went into her page first to check they were a real person and she had a full profile,” Ms Raymond told Prime Time.
“She had screenshots of the ticket confirmation, all with her name which matched her Facebook name.”
The ‘seller’ said she would change the name on the two tickets to Amy’s once she paid the €270.
“I should have known that a name change and resale wasn’t open yet,” she said. “That was probably the first red flag.”
Unaware that ticket transfer wasn’t available, Ms Raymond sent money via Revolut and waited for an update but the tickets never materialised. She was blocked by the profile and unable to reclaim any of the money.
“As soon as I saw the chat ended my heart sank because I knew it was a scam. You’re just raging because you just feel so stupid.”
“We all know not to click on links and text, but I just thought it was a person which is so annoying,” Ms Raymond said.
The demand for the tickets is down to how Swift has transcended pop stardom to become a cultural and economic force, according to RTÉ Entertainment reporter, Alan Corr.
“The way she’s finessed a big sister image that her fans find so very attractive has been very clever and very calculated, but it comes across organically and naturally.
“She has become one of the biggest pop stars of all time and could do seven nights in the Aviva if she wanted.”
Mr Corr said this is one of the busiest weekends ever for music in Ireland.
“High demand and a dedicated, hugely passionate fan base mixed with scammers is a perfect storm for criminality.”
Ticketmaster operates a resale platform but Swift tickets are few and far between. The digital nature of tickets makes it difficult for buyers outside of the official platform to be certain what they are paying for is legitimate.
“Taylor tickets are like gold dust and any genuine tickets that do become available are gone in nanoseconds – this all puts the ordinary fan at a distinct disadvantage, they just cannot compete with bots snapping up tickets,” Corr told the programme.
Another Swift fan, Shane Barkey from Mullingar, narrowly avoided falling victim to a scam.
After missing out on buying tickets in the original sale, he told Prime Time how he contacted a friend’s cousin after seeing a post on her Facebook page that she was selling four tickets for Saturday’s concert.
“It wasn’t a random seller. It was a cousin of a friend who I know quite well, so there was a certain element of trust.
“It was the actual person’s profile so I got in touch on Facebook Messenger,” he explained.
The individual advised she was selling the tickets for €150 each. However, as the conversation continued, Shane became suspicious and asked to speak on the phone.
“As soon as she said I don’t do phone calls, I knew it was a scam.”
Shane says the profile had been hacked and he was lucky to have avoided sending money.
“I nearly handed over €600.”
For those who miss out on tickets for Swift there are plenty of other events in the capital, according to Alan Corr.
“This is one of the busiest weekends Dublin has seen in years with the Pride Parade Festival, Longitude Festival in Marley Park, the GAA football All-Ireland quarter-finals and Shania Twain at Malahide Castle all happening, but it is Taylor who will overshadow all that,” he explained.
“It’s a sign of the phenomenon that she has become that when she last played Ireland in 2018 with two nights in Croke Park, she didn’t sell out the place on either night – this time around she is the ultimate golden ticket.”
Watch Louise Byrne’s full report on the 27 June edition of Prime Time on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.
