Festival and concertgoers are being warned by Wiltshire Police to be vigilant of ticket scams ahead of popular sold-out events this summer. 

Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, has launched a ticket fraud awareness campaign urging people to be alert to sellers trying to catch them out.

Data reveals that £91,994 was lost to ticket fraud in Wiltshire last year and £6.7 million was lost across the country.

Detective Constable Fraud Protect Officer, Rachel Davies, said: “Please check the contact details of the site you are buying the tickets from. It is worth making contact via the company’s telephone to confirm the address and that you are buying from a genuine site.”

Fraudsters often create fake ticket retail companies, luring victims in through social media or convincing phishing emails, but instead give away their personal information, take their money or divert to malicious websites which can infect computers with malware.

Pauline Smith, Head of Action Fraud, said: “We all want to enjoy ticketed events this summer, but that doesn’t stop fraudsters from taking the fun out things we look forward to doing. Too many people are losing out to fraudulent activity or genuine looking phishing messages.

“Make sure you don’t get ticked off – recognise the signs of ticket fraud before getting caught out. Remember to be wary of unsolicited messages offering deals too good to be true.”

Wiltshire Police has issued the following advice:

  • Only buy tickets from the venue’s box office, the promoter, an official agent or a well-known and reputable ticket exchange site.

  • Avoid paying for tickets by bank transfer, especially if buying from someone unknown. Credit card or payment services such as PayPal give you a better chance of recovering the money if you do become a victim of fraud.

  • The password you use for your email account, as well as other accounts you may use to purchase tickets, should be different from all your other passwords. It is recommended to use three random words to create a strong and memorable password and enable 2-step verification.

  • Be wary of unsolicited emails, texts or adverts offering unbelievably good deals on tickets.

  • Check if the vendor is a member of the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR). If they are, the company has signed up to their strict governing standards and STAR also offers an approved Alternative Dispute Resolution service to help customers with outstanding complaints.

Anything you think is suspicious can be reported to the Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS) at report@phishing.gov.uk