Courtesy: Better Business Bureau)
An upswing in gift card scam reports is has become a central concern for the Better Business Bureau (BBB).
Scammer utilize many tactics to quickly and assuredly steal money from their victims, and a new favorite appears to be tricking the scamee to pay in with gift cards that can be quickly drained of their funds.
Better Business Bureau (BBB) research shows fraud reports to BBB Scam Tracker involving gift cards as a form of payment spiked in the first three quarters of 2023, up 50% from the same period the year prior.
Key findings:
- Fraudsters leverage international networks to convince consumers to hand over gift cards.
- Advance fee loans, government impersonation, phishing and lottery/sweepstakes top the list of scam types used most often to obtain gift cards.
- Scammers frequently seek gift cards from big-box, technology and online stores.
- Technology, like algorithms meant to detect fraudulent behavior, helps retailers stop scammers in their tracks and sometimes return money to customers.
- There have been 3,918 reports to the BBB Scam Tracker since 2020.
- There have been 177,074 reports to the Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel Network with $690 million in losses since 2020.
In the report, was an incident involving a Nebraska couple, eager to secure a rental car for their Florida vacation, who mistakenly dialed what they believed to be Enterprise after a Google search. Falling for an apparent deal with American Express that allowed them to use pre-paid cards for rental savings, the couple sent $400 to scammers posing as Enterprise agents. When the scammers claimed the cards were invalid and demanded an extra $400, the couple grew suspicious. Realizing the deception, Sue and Darwin promptly contacted the legitimate Enterprise hotline, where a representative confirmed they had been scammed.
The BBB’s tips to spot a gift card scam:
- Be wary of anyone asking for payment with a gift card, including “government” agencies. No legitimate government organization will ask you to pay with a gift card.
- If you suspect a scam, contact the gift card seller, the actual business or government organization supposedly asking for money, and BBB to ask if you are dealing with a scammer.
- To find contact information, go directly to the organization’s website rather than search for their customer service number, which can be spoofed by scammers.
- Keep all information related to your purchase if you are scammed, because some retailers may require that information for refunds.
- If you suspect fraud, act immediately, contact the gift card seller or the number on the back of the card to report it.
For more information, visit BBB.org.