Billie Eilish and The “Bad Guy” Ticket Scammers

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If you follow Billie Eilish’s rise in popularity, impressive doesn’t even begin to describe the speed of her ascent.

The last time Billie played Montreal, it was the sold-out Corona Theatre with a capacity of 753 lucky fans on March 27th, 2018.

Fast forward a little over a year to June 12th, 2019 and she sells out Place Bell with a capacity of 10,000 fans.

So what does a fan do when they want to see their favorite artist?  Facebook event page or Kijiji.

The problem is that “Bad Guy” ticket scammers are there as well.  This happened to someone I know.

HOW TO SPOT A SCAMMER SELLING TICKETS

If you post that you are looking for a ticket, chances are that the people who offer you one via the comments asking you to DM them are scammers.

For this example, we will take the scammer “DB Snow Cubana” on Facebook (of course, the user no longer exists) who failed to deliver a ticket once paid.

Once the payment was made, the victim was blocked. Scam completed. 

Step 1: Google search the username of the seller in quotes and the word Facebook:  “bd snow cubana” facebook

RED LIGHT WARNING:  The user is found in many events, in various cities.  Suspicous

Step 2: Look at their Facebook Profile.  

RED LIGHT WARNING:  Very little personal information (maybe only School and Lives in). Few pictures.  Few friends.  Minimal activity in Timeline.  

Step 3: They ask for a PayPal transfer using “Friends and Family”. 

RED LIGHT WARNING:  If you use “Sending to a friend”…you are NOT protected and will not have any recourse with PayPal.  Only purchase using “Paying for an item or service” to have Purchase Protection.

WHAT TO DO TO AVOID BEING SCAMMED

Buy your tickets from the promoter directly.  Yeah…but it’s sold out.  Some reputable sites like Stub Hub will guarantee your tickets.  You might pay more (US dollars + transaction fee) but you will get in.

Ask for their telephone number and call them directly before doing anything.  It’s easy to change a Facebook Profile name, but harder to keep changing phone numbers.

Make sure the seller lives in the same city.  The area code of a cell phone will tell you a lot.

Ask to see ID before doing a transaction.  Scammers will want to hide their identity. 

Ask for a photo confirmation of the tickets, although if they are scammers…they might sell a legitimate ticket to multiple people and the first one in will be the lucky one.

HOW TO SELL YOUR TICKETS?

For ticket resellers, Quebec Bill 25 prevents the resell of tickets at a higher than face value, without first obtaining the permission of the ticket’s original vendor.  You need to state the face value of the ticket you are reselling and provide the name of the original vendor.  You must inform potential buyer that a refund will be issued if, for example, if the show is cancelled.

This law does not regulate the sale of tickets between two consumers.

You can try to use a site like Stub Hub or VividSeats which will charge you 10% to handle everything.  

If you opt for Facebook or Kijiji…make sure you are using a profile that has been active for quite a while.  People will be more likely to trust you.

Offer to send a PayPal invoice, which gives the buyer protection and gives you legitimacy.  

If possible, sell them at the venue in person and offer to go with the individual buying them to the gate.  

IT’S NOT BILLIE’S FAULT

It goes without saying that Billie has nothing to do with these scams.  They are perpetrated to countless others at a variety of shows.  

WHAT DO I DO IF I WAS SCAMMED?

If you paid for the tickets using PayPal family and friends…consider the money gone.  You will also likely find that the Facebook profile no longer exists.  

BD Snow Cubana scammed $50 from my friend, but at what costs?

You reap what you sow is a famous saying that applies here.  

Even if the person hiding behind these fake profiles gets away with the crime, they still have to pay back the universe in some way. 

They might quiet the voice in their heads that denounces their actions, but it’s still there.  This voice will affect the quality of the people that they surround themselves with.  It will affect their subconscious in ways we don’t know, but none of them good.

To hold on to anger is like drinking poison and hoping the other person gets sick.  Let it go. That $50 investment taught you some valuable insight.  It might save you thousands in your lifetime!  

The best thing you can do is warn others.  Looking at the upcoming events, it’s easy to spot the potential scammers.  Facebook users with no real history or timeline engagement.

Share this article with friends, or the Facebook Event page.  Help others with the lessons you leaned.  Maybe the universe will decide to pay you back in ways you didn’t think possible.     


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