Swifties have been warned to be alert for scammers trying to cash in on Taylor Swift’s new album announcement using fake pre-orders, links to leaked downloads and dodgy merchandise to steal money from excited fans.
Taylor Swift appeared on her boyfriend Travis Kelce’s podcast on Wednesday to announce her upcoming album Life of a Showgirl, which is due to be released on October 3.
The new album can be pre-ordered through Taylor Swift’s website, but NAB has warned fans to watch out for scammers turning to Swiftie-mania for fast money.
NAB Security Culture and Advisory head Tessa Bowles said the bank stopped and recovered close to $2m in scam payments each month.
“When excitement is high, criminals know fans will rush to make purchases, reminding people to stop, check and protect,” she said.
“Before you hand over your payment details, make sure you’re paying for the real thing, not some imitation of a showgirl.”
Ms Bowles said red flags to look out for were fake pre-order sites that mimicked Taylor’s official store to steal payments or deliver nothing and links to leaked tracks that hid malware.
She said scammers often promoted social media giveaways but were impersonators pretending to offer exclusive access in exchange for personal information or a fee or hijacked accounts pretending to sell spare merchandise.
Ms Bowles said fans should stay in their “safe-ty era” by going to the official site and websites of trusted retailers.
“Criminals thrive on urgency and fear,” she said.
“If you see ‘get in quick’ or ‘last chance offer’ on something that sounds too good to be true, pause and double-check it first.
“Buying items through social media or online marketplaces always comes with a risk. If you decide to proceed with the purchase, do so with caution, checking whether the seller has a legitimate profile, other listings and reviews.
“Using PayID can also help reduce the risk of fraud or payments being sent to the wrong account as you can see the name of the person or business when paying.
“Be cautious of sellers asking you to pay with gift cards or cryptocurrencies.”
More than 90,000 scams have been reported to ScamWatch tin 2025, resulting in Australians losing $147m so far this year.
