SINGAPORE – At least $11,000 has been lost in scams during the week tickets for K-pop superstars BTS’ Singapore leg of their Arirang concert tour went on sale on June 3.

The police said in a statement on June 6 that there were at least 14 reported cases linked to fake concert tickets from fraudsters since June 1.

The septet – comprising RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook – will perform in Singapore on Dec 17, 19, 20 and 22 as part of their Arirang world tour.

All tickets for the Singapore leg of BTS’ Arirang tour have been sold, with online travel platform Klook becoming the final sales channel to exhaust its allocation on June 6.

The police said that scammers approached victims through social media platform X.

The police said that scammers approached victims through social media platform X.

PHOTO: SPF

Victims responded to advertisements or listings of concert tickets for sale on online platforms such as X, Instagram and Carousell, added the police.

To make a purchase, they were instructed to pay via PayNow or by scanning a PayNow QR code.

After the initial payment, the scammers would ask the victims to make additional payments for reasons such as administrative fees.

Victims realised they had been scammed only when they did not receive the tickets.

The police urged members of the public to purchase concert tickets only from authorised platforms such as Ticketmaster.

The public also should be wary of resellers claiming to be able to transfer their tickets to another Ticketmaster account after purchase, as the tickets are strictly not transferable.

The police said they are working closely with X to take down fraudulent accounts which offer resale tickets for the BTS shows here.

It has also approached Carousell to request the removal of relevant resale concert ticket listings.

In line with policies under Meta, Facebook Marketplace does not allow content that promotes the buying, selling or trading of event tickets.

TikTok shop’s policies do not support the sales of concert tickets, police added.

They advise the public to download the ScamShield app to protect themselves against scams. The public can also report fraudulent advertisements to the social media and e-commerce platforms.

To learn how to stay safe from scams, go to www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield helpline on 1799.