Scammers increasingly targeting major events
Posted Jun 16, 2026 12:42:38 PM.
Last Updated Jun 16, 2026 12:42:41 PM.
Anytime there is a major ticketed event, scammers will be looking for a way to take advantage, according to experts.
Just like with Taylor Swift fans last summer, soccer fans this year are reporting they too have fallen victim.
Angela Dennis, CEO, Better Business Bureau of Central Ontario, was a guest on The Mike Farwell Show, where she outlined some of the more common scams out there, right now.
“Ticket scams, travel scams. Those two items, they’ll (scammers) actually create false websites. They look identical, and there’s just a slight variation in the URL spelling. So, look for that.”
She also mentioned QR codes when people are at the event. She said there have been cases where the scammers put a fake QR code sticker over the original.
Dennis said one of the key tactics used, especially with online frauds is high pressure.
“If you get an email indicating it’s a great deal or that your payment may not have gone through and ‘click here or you might lose your tickets.’ Stop! Don’t panic. It’s probably a scam. It’s that old adage: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
Before fans make big online purchases, Dennis recommends checking out the company first. She said the Better Business Bureau can help with that.
“We do provide profiles on accredited and nonaccredited businesses. So, consumers can check before they do any purchasing and see what we have on those businesses. Whether they are accredited, what their ratings are, whether we’ve had any customer complaints or reviews.”
When it comes to private online sales, Waterloo Regional Police have established Buy and Sell Exchange Zones in the parking lots at its facilities on Maple Grove Road in Cambridge, Hespeler Road in Cambridge and Columbia Street East in Waterloo.
WRPS also offer tips on buy and selling online. The last one echoes what the Better Business Bureau was preaching; Stop. Pause. Think. If something seems too good to be true, it likely is.
