BBB warns about Taylor Swift ticket scams ahead of Minneapolis concerts

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning people about losing money to Taylor Swift concert ticket scams ahead of her shows at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Friday and Saturday.

The BBB says people are desperate to find more affordable tickets and could be taken advantage of in the process, particularly on Facebook, including in resale groups on the social media platform and posts with fake stories about why they are selling the tickets.

A Chicago resident said they lost $350 from a Craigslist ticket posting after the person quit texting them and never sent a ticket following getting the money, according to the BBB.

Additionally, the BBB says online purchases have been the #1 riskiest scam type in their Scam Tracker Risk Report for three years.

The BBB offers these tips to people to try to avoid ticket scams:

• Be wary of sob stories about someone selling tickets because of a family emergency, or using repetitive, overly emotional language.
• When purchasing resale tickets from an individual, only use PayPal Goods and Services for the purchase. Scammers will not be willing to use this method.
• If buying from an unknown third party, request a video call to meet the person and have them show you their tickets in the Ticketmaster app.
• When possible, only buy tickets at the box office or from the venue’s official site, and be careful because imitation sites can appear first in internet searches.
• Only deal with secure websites. These will begin with “HTTPS” and have a “lock” symbol on the address bar. 
• Fake websites will offer low-price tickets to trick people into entering their credit card info. Scammers can take your money and use your credit card to purchase big-ticket items.
• Use payment methods that come with protection. Always use a credit card so you have some recourse if the tickets are not as promised. Debit cards, wire transfers, or cash transactions are money lost if the tickets are fraudulent.