Willie Nelson’s Team Warns Fans About Imposters On Social Media
on Jul 18, 2024
Be On The Lookout For Willie Nelson Imposters Online
Willie Nelson’s team is warning fans about imposter profiles pretending to be the country music legend on social media.
Scammers often pretend to be celebrities on Facebook, Instagram, X, and other social media sites. They sometimes rip off the celebrities’ profile pictures from their real accounts to confuse fans and seem legitimate.
These scammers respond to fans in the comments on the celebrity’s actual posts or on news stories about them. Some scammers send private messages to fans in an effort to pull off their schemes.
Usually, scammers try to strike up a rapport and thank fans for their devotion. Then, they ask the fans to send them money or gift cards, saying it’s for concert tickets, their charity, or to help them through a tough time.
Many people don’t fall for the tricks, but others do. In fact, social media scams are so common that a group of country music stars filmed a PSA about imposter accounts in 2018. Artists such as Rascal Flatts, Blake Shelton, Keith Urban, and Kelly Clarkson participated in the PSA.
RELATED: JELLY ROLL WARNS FANS TO BEWARE OF TICKET SCAMS FOR “BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN TOUR“
Imposter profiles often become more prevalent after a celebrity has been in the news. For example, shortly after Scotty McCreery welcomed his son, Avery, in 2022, his team had to warn fans about an uptick in scammers pretending to be him online.
While there have always been Willie Nelson imposter profiles, it seems there’s been an increase in scams after the country music legend recently canceled some shows to recover from an illness. Nelson’s team shared a post on his Instagram Story warning fans to beware of these scams.
“Please be aware of fake accounts claiming to be Willie or any members of his team,” the post read. “This is the only official [Instagram] account for Willie Nelson and we will never message you asking for money, help, or things of the sort.”
Nelson’s team encouraged his fans to “report and block” any accounts impersonating him.
How Can You Spot A Fake Profile On Social Media?
So, how can you identify imposter profiles on social media? Here are a few tips…
- On sites such as Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok, verified profiles have a blue checkmark by their names.
- Scammers often misspell a celebrity’s name, add extra letters/numbers/symbols, or label themselves as a “fan page.”
- Celebrities typically don’t send their fans private messages. If they do, they will never ask you for money or gift cards.
- Imposter profiles have fewer followers than legitimate profiles.
- Imposter profiles also tend to have fewer posts on their wall/feed when compared to legitimate profiles.
As Nelson’s team mentioned in their post, if you encounter an imposter profile, please report it and block the account. In doing so, you’ll protect yourself and others from the scammer.
