Gift Card Scam

[Howard Hartman]

Gift Card Scam

Gift cards from retail stores continue to grow in popularity. Along with this new found popularity come the thieves and scammers. A new scam has been discovered which can provide someone a shopping spree from your gift card. The scam works like this:

Scammers write down numbers on the back of gift cards on store racks.

After several days, they call an 800 number to find if the card has been activated.

If it has, that means the gift card has already been sold. The scammer goes online, using the card to pay for a shopping spree. Online shopping only requires an activated gift card and the card's serial number.

When the recipient tries to use the card it has a zero balance.

The reason the scam works is simple -- the cards are on racks where customers have easy access to them.

What You Can Do

If you're buying gift cards, insist that the cashier gives you cards that have not been displayed on a rack. There is nearly always a back-up supply of cards behind the register. Ask that your cards be taken from that supply. If the cashier refuses, don't buy the card.