MILWAUKEE — The holiday shopping season is here. With the pandemic, many local in-person events, such as popup holiday markets or craft fairs, have moved online. Scammers are creating phony copycat events that charge for admission and steal private credit card information.
Tips to avoid holiday event scams:
● Is there an admission fee? Visit the event’s website to see if an admission ticket is required for the virtual event. If not, watch for scammers trying to claim otherwise. If this happens, message the event coordinator to help prevent other virtual attendees from being scammed.
● Research vendors and the host. If the event is unfamiliar to you, research the host and list of vendors ahead of time. While virtually browsing from booth to booth, only click on the links provided. If unsure if a shop is legitimate, do an online search for that vendor’s store rather than follow the link provided.
● When making any purchases, use a credit card. This way if anything gets charged that wasn’t supposed to be, a file can be claimed with the credit card company.
● Keep receipts. Make note of all of purchases and save receipts. Questions about a product, or need to make a return, would then have the vendor’s information readily available.
● Know the return policy. Before making a purchase, ask the vendor what their return policy is so as to not run into issues after the holidays.
How the scam works ...
You hear that your city’s annual holiday market or another shopping event will be held virtually this year. You search for it online and find a social media post or event page. Besides moving online, one other big thing is different this year. The event, which has been free in the past, is now requiring a paid ticket. You enter your credit card number and personal information, such as full name and address.
Unfortunately, the “ticket” is a scam! The event information you found was posted by scammers and not affiliated with the real holiday market. Con artists are creating fake event pages, social posts, and emails to confuse attendees into sharing their credit card information.
In another twist on this scam, some virtual holiday markets have a website or social media page where vendors can post photos of their products and links to their websites. Be careful here too! Some consumers reported to BBB that they clicked the links provided, thinking they lead to an online shop. Instead, the sites downloaded malware.
Read more about holiday pop-up shops and event scams on BBB.org. Find out more about online event scams on Event Industry News. Click here for BBB’s tips for buying tickets to an event.
Anyone targeted by this type of scam can file a scam report at BBB.org/ScamTracker.
For more information or further inquiries, contact the Wisconsin BBB at www.bbb.org/wisconsin, 414-847-6000 or 1-800-273-1002. Consumers also can find more information about how to protect themselves from scams by following the Wisconsin BBB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
