KUALA LUMPUR – Alleged scams for concert tickets for next Wednesday’s Coldplay concert appear to be running rampant, with social media users sharing their personal experiences interacting with scalpers reselling tickets.
The sold-out show at the 85,000-seat Bukit Jalil Stadium is set to be a huge affair as this is the first time the British sensation is performing here.
Scalpers are taking advantage of the hype as the event draws near, and are behaving aggressively, said one social media user called Normie, who spoke to Scoop.
Normie, known as Nadira Bajuri on X, said she contacted a social media account advertising tickets also on X, and the person began pushing her to bank in money quickly.
Normie, 32, said she noted several red flags as she continued her direct message chat with the account, especially when she asked for proof of ticket legitimacy.
“The ticket looked weird, too! And the bank account belongs to a guy, (but) I was chatting with a girl,” she said.
The scalper was pushing her a Category 7 seat ticket for RM200, and proceeded to ask for her email address, before sending over bank account details for her to transfer money to – all without providing any proof of there being a genuine ticket, Normie added.
When she pressed for further evidence of the ticket, the reseller sent her a screenshot of an email with a supposed confirmation number, but addressed to someone else.
Normie said she was able to compare the screenshot with an actual ticket she had bought earlier during pre-sales, and knew that the scalper’s “proof” was not genuine.
Normie also said she had a friend who was scammed of RM100 when buying tickets for the concert.
Another X user, @rlaskdmf, posted a set of screenshots of a direct message thread between her and the same alleged scammer on Tuesday.
Like Normie, she said that the first thing the alleged scammer did was ask for her email. But when she asked for a PDF of the ticket and a genuine receipt as well as the blurred QR code, the reseller turned rude and even called her “a**hole lady”.
The reseller insisted on keeping further details private and asked for her WhatsApp contact instead, before accusing her of needing too many requirements and finally telling her to buy tickets elsewhere.
Hoping to guide others away from being scalped, an X user with the handle @syhnify shared screenshots of a conversation with an apparent reseller.
#COLDPLAYinKL later there will be a lot of people coming and there are already tons who got scammed months ago. Now that concert day is near please check thoroughly with the reseller. This is what I did with one of the “resellers”. If ada Bau bau scam please avoid! pic.twitter.com/E2Z6stpzrU
— ;niyo; (@syhnify) November 15, 2023
“Later, there will be a lot of people coming (to the concert) and there are already tons who got scammed months ago. Now that concert day is near, please check thoroughly with the reseller.
“This is what I did with one of the ‘resellers’. If ‘ada bau-bau scam’ (it smells like a scam) please avoid!” said @syhnify in the post’s caption.
Selling ticket prices at RM230 each, the reseller sent screenshots of a supposed ticket for Door B, Row T, Section 307, Seat 50 Cat 7 at the stadium as “proof” of ticket legitimacy, without providing their name when asked.
The user @syhnify said a frequent ticket reseller would usually send proof of their real name, bank account name, identification card and watermarked tickets as evidence to convince customers of their legitimacy.
On Carousell, many resellers are also posting “affordable” ticket prices every hour, with recent ones ranging from RM400 to RM820.
In May, Live Nation Malaysia, the concert organiser, had already stated that tickets bought cannot be resold. Managing director Para Rajagopal said that no ticket cancellation has been made so far, and that cancellations could only happen with valid proof from the organisers.
He added that the organisers could not track every ticket sold, but social media posts concerning resellers and scalpers would be monitored. He said that no buyers had bought more tickets than allowed, according to the organiser’s investigation.
The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry has said that Coldplay concert ticket buyers who were conned by resellers could file an official complaint with relevant evidence so that investigations can proceed. – November 18, 2023