UK gov warns music fans: £1.6m lost to ticket fraud in 2024

The UK government has warned music goers to remain vigilant about last-minute ticket sales on social media ahead of the Glastonbury Festival, the UK’s world-famous five-day music and performing arts festival.

As part of its wider crackdown on scammers and online fraud, the Home Office has released new data, revealing that the public lost more than £1.6 million in scams related to concert tickets in 2024, double that of the previous year.

Action Fraud, the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime, detailed 3,700 gig ticket fraud reports in 2024. Almost half of those reports concerned offers made on social media platforms.

“While millions of Britons are getting ready to attend concerts this summer, the scammers are getting ready to exploit the desperate search for tickets, posting fake messages on social media sites offering to resell tickets they can’t use, or making last-minute offers from fake ticket companies,” said Fraud Minister Lord Hanson.

People in their 20s accounted for 27% of all victims. Overall, fraud is the most common crime in the UK, affecting 1 in 15 adults each year. The government is urging people to follow its Stop! Think Fraud campaign advice before they make any suspicious ticket purchase.

When purchasing a festival ticket, remember: only buy tickets from a box office or an official ticketing website; carefully evaluate any offer you get to obtain last-minute, high-demand tickets; never leave the official platform to make the payment via bank transfer or virtual currency.

“Key signs of ticket fraud include unsolicited messages with ticket offers and deals, or requests for payment via bank transfer. When buying tickets, use a reputable or official ticket-selling site. Always take a moment to double check offers for tickets and pay using a credit card. Follow the advice from Stop! Think Fraud site on how to protect yourself from fraud,” Tor Garnett, City of London Police Commander for Cyber and Economic Crime, said,

And don’t forget: if the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.

“That is why our campaign is called Stop! Think Fraud, so no matter how real a deal looks, we all need to take a moment to think: am I being ripped off? So, let’s all stay cautious, stay alert, and stay protected from fraud. Don’t let the scammers ruin your summer,” Lorn Hanson added.

The government is trying to implement additional measures to crack down on fraud, such as a new ban on SIM farms, technical devices that facilitate fraud on an industrial scale.

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) has lately issued a similar advisory ahead of the general sale of tickets for Blackpink’s Singapore concerts.