Scams multiply at the dawn of Taylor Swift concerts in Canada | Taylor Swift in Canada

Tickets for Taylor Swift’s shows in Toronto and Vancouver, the last of her Eras tour, are selling for thousands of dollars on resale sites — and increasingly ingenious scammers want their piece of the pie.

For mega-fans as Summer Nickelfinding last minute tickets online is a nightmare. The 20-year-old young woman, Maple Ridgein British Columbia, has been trying for a year to find tickets on Facebook.

After about fifteen tries, nothing worked. Sellers want the money sent to them immediately. It’s very suspiciousshe said.

It’s difficult to distinguish the true from the false.

She points out that her mother, who was also trying to buy her tickets, almost fell into the trap of an online scam. A friend Facebook had posted tickets for sale on his page, but it was a hacked account.

Someone even created a fake profile from the account of Summer Nickel to try to scam his loved ones. It’s clearly not me because I’m looking for tickets. I don’t have any to sell, she said. It’s just really crazy what’s happening.

I felt helpless

Cybersecurity expert Ritesh Kotak says people tend to be fooled when the seller poses as a friend because there is a certain level of trust. It adds an element of legitimacyhe said.

These tickets are very popular. People are willing to pay a lot to get it. Fraudsters will do everything in their power to exploit them.

Canadians whose accounts were hacked say they reported the fraud to Facebook and asked their friends and family to do the same. But in many cases, they say the social network did not remove the fraudulent accounts or their posts.

I felt helpless. It’s awful that my name is being used to scam other peoplesays Sonia Sidhu, a Torontonian whose account Facebook was hacked last July.

The fraudulent account posted in different groups that Sonia Sidhu was a part of, claiming to have tickets for sale for the shows of Taylor Swift.

The Torontonian knows of at least four people who have been scammed for amounts up to $1,600. She says that subscribers Facebook from his network reported the fake account to the company.

Sonia Sidhu says she reported the situation to the police and Facebook around twenty times, but the hacked account still remains active. It’s irresponsible, she said. [Facebook] knows these accounts are hacked. They are used to scam people and they don’t care.

The company did not respond to our numerous requests for comment.

How to spot a scam

To fight against fraud, Ticketmaster only allows ticket holders to access their tickets 72 hours before a concert. The online ticket office implemented this measure last month, in response to strong demand for concert tickets. Taylor Swift.

Those who claim to be able to transfer tickets more than three days in advance are therefore probably not real sellers, emphasizes Ticketmaster.

Despite this, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center has received more than 200 reports regarding fraudulent tickets for shows. Taylor Swift in the country, since January 2023. Individual losses reported range from a deposit of $200 up to $15,000 for four supposed tickets.

The watchdog says this is the tip of the iceberg because, it estimates, only 5% of fraud victims report it to authorities.

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A majority of reports concern victims contacted through compromised social media accounts belonging to someone they knowsays Lisanne Roy Beauchamp, spokesperson for the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center.

This tactic would provide a victimization advantage since there already exists a level of trust between the victim and the original owner of the compromised account. The use of compromised accounts is concerning, as this indicates a higher level of sophistication on the part of fraudsters.

Toronto police recommend that people check the identity of the seller — for example, by calling the Facebook friend they claim to be. According to David Coffeydetective in the financial crimes unit, this is the best way to avoid getting scammed.

It is very, very difficult to find this money.

Police are rarely able to devote resources to tracking down fraudsters because of the large number of reports they receive, he says.

It goes beyond the financial loss, adds the detective Coffey. It’s truly heartbreaking to see parents desperate to buy these tickets for their children, or the children trying to get them themselves.

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Despite the risks of scams, Summer Nickel says she is determined to find a ticket. His passion for Taylor Swift dates back to his first concert, more than a decade ago.

I’m pretty desperate. I’m willing to pay a small fortuneshe said.

With reporting from CBC’s Lisa Xing