£6m Glastonbury and Taylor Swift ticket warning ahead of huge summer of music

Taylor Swift and Glastonbury Festival music lovers have been handed a warning ahead of a massive summer of live gigs. West Midlands Police urged those desperate for last-minute resale tickets to the giant festival and Swift's UK dates to keep their wits about them as they tried to ensure admission.

The force said £6.7m was lost to ticket fraud last year. Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, has launched a ticket fraud awareness campaign. Last year more than 8,700 people reported they had been a victim of ticket fraud, with an average loss of £772 per person, according to the West Midlands force website.

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In the West Midlands alone 369 incidents of ticket fraud were reported last year, with victims losing a combined £469,895. Khatija Nichols, from the force's Economic Crime Unit, said: "As summer heats up, so does the excitement for concerts and festivals but beware, scammers are out to steal your joy and your money with fake tickets.

"Don't let ticket fraud turn your summer fun into heartbreak. The safest way to ensure you get genuine tickets for an event is to buy from the authorised ticket seller or reseller.

"Sharing photos of your tickets online can also put you at risk. Scammers can steal the ticket information and resell it fraudulently.

"Be mindful of what you post on social media and never share personal details, banking information, or passwords publicly."

How to avoid ticket fraud:

• 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 fraud occurs
• The password you use for your email account, or other accounts you use to buy tickets, should be different from all your other passwords. Use three random words to create a strong and memorable password, and enable two-step verification
• Beware of unsolicited emails, texts or adverts offering unbelievably good deals on tickets
• Is the vendor a member of Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR)? If they are, the company complies with their strict governing standards. STAR also offers an approved Alternative Dispute Resolution service to help customers with outstanding complaints at star.org.uk/buy_safe

Fraudsters often create fake ticket retail companies. Victims are lured in through social media or phishing emails with offers of the chance to buy tickets to a popular event.

Instead victims will give away their personal information or money, the tickets never arrive. Phishing messages often look real but instead will either steal information or divert to malicious websites which can infect a computer with malware.

Of the reports made to Action Fraud last year, 34 per cent, 2,993, mentioned concert tickets, 29 per cent, 2,523, mentioned travel and 18 per cent, 1,561, mentioned sporting events.

Check out fraud helplines and advice here

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