Scammers have been targeting artists, vendors and sponsors ahead of this month’s Ann Arbor Art Fair.
The scams are nothing new, but there has been a sharp increase this year. The scammers go through the fair’s Facebook pages to identify targets. They then tell the potential victims they are their contact for the fair.
Angela Kline is Executive Director of Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, The Original. She says do not use third-party companies for contacts.
“And how the scam is evolving, or how it has become a bigger problem, is they’re now going through our artists’ directory and targeting the artists by name directly through their email accounts. And they’re pretty convincing letters. That’s the nature of the scam.”
The scammers then ask for money to provide some service, which never arrives.
Kline says they don’t message anyone on social media or send emails, except via the Art Fair’s official account.
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