Gift Card Scams

Everyone needs to know about Gift Card Scams. If a stranger is insisting that you use a Gift Card to pay for something, your next thought should be SCAM! Please mistrust anyone asking you to go buy a gift card. You should treat gift cards just like cash. Only use them as gifts, with people you know, love and trust.

Gift Card Scam Examples

There are so many stories that gift card scams use, to manipulate and trick people:

• Someone from Microsoft is calling. And s/he says they’ll fix your computer and you can pay them using a Walmart Gift Card.
• An investment genius on Facebook asks you to buy them Google Play Gift Cards so you can participate in a Bitcoin-Generating investment operation.
• The IRS contacts you regarding tax arrears, and claims you can avoid jailtime by buying them several Amazon Gift Cards.
• You’ve won the lottery, but first need to provide the authorities with a gift card deposit. It’s just a little processing fee to get you your millions…
• The FCC and FBI are telling you that your bank accounts are in danger, and your funds can only be protected if you withdraw everything and convert your dollars into Apple gift cards.
• Your local court officials have called, claiming you missed your jury duty. They state they can send an officer to your door, or you can settle up over the phone with gift cards that you purchase online right now.
• An amazing rental opportunity has landed in your lap, but the deposit to hold the apartment requires a Visa gift card payment.

And so on. I know that most of you reading the above are rolling your eyes and doubting that people would ever fall for these fictions. But the truth of the matter is: Scammers are very good at what they do. The stress and psychology and exhaustion involved in a scam often compromises victims’ judgment. People buy gift cards for scammers, unable to fully see what is happening at the time.

Why Gift Cards?

Scammers love gift cards! They know that fraudulent credit card charges are easily disputed. Bank transfers can sometimes be reversed and then tracked. But the funds on gift cards are largely untraceable and unrecoverable. Once they get a number from a gift card, they syphon off that money and vanish with their spoils.

Gift cards can be bought online or in stores. And scammers push their victims in either direction. Sometimes, they step people through a website to buy a gift card. But other times, they convince their victims to travel to nearby stores to buy tangible gift cards.

In either case, let the mere mention of a gift card be a red flag to you that you have encountered a scam. Legitimate companies will never run you to the store to buy such things. Banks and government officials never deal in gift cards. If you encounter a gift card scam, disconnect the call or delete the messages and move on!

Did You Lose Money in a Gift Card Scam?

If a scammer convinced you to purchase gift cards, I am so very sorry. Please understand that your money is probably lost. As soon as you shared the numbers on the back of the card, the criminal logged in and transferred all of the funds off of that card, to their own accounts. It’s very quick and irreversible.

But, as soon as you figure out the situation, here’s what you should do:

• Contact the gift card company about the scam. In rare situations, quick action allows them to freeze the gift card(s) and return you your funds.
• Call the bank or credit card company for the method of payment you used. Ask to be transferred to the fraud department. Explain to them the details of the scam you’ve been through and ask if you can dispute the charges or claw back any of your funds involved in this theft.
• Report the crime to our government (the FTC).
• Call your local police, to ask if the crime is worth filing a report with them.
• If you purchased the gift cards at a physical store, go talk to the store manager or call their corporate office. Most big-box stores are now training their cashiers to watch out for gift card fraud, and management may look to make amends if their employees did not do enough to help their customers.

And if your computer was accessed during such a scam, please contact me or another tech company you trust, to have your system checked over and cleaned against further intrusion.