Finding the perfect gift for the New Year can be difficult, so more and more people are buying gift cards for family, friends or loved ones.Gift cards are highly popular, as the second-most given gift by consumers, the most-wanted gift by women, and the third-most wanted by males. According to the Federal Trade Commission, gift card is one of the most popular and convenient ways for scammers to request payment.

How hackers do it:

Some people look perfectly normal when they hang out in a store’s gift card cabinet, but they’re actually scraping the pin number on a gift card when the clerk isn’t looking.They will record all the card’s information and copy the number.Then, they will put another silver stickers on the cards to make them look like new.

Some countries in Africa, someone will give their card PIN to the middlemen, then he will look for buyers online. Among the layers of relationships, may be a link in the deception, will lead to new card into a card used. Generally there will be three cases would happen: first of all, your middlemen deceived you, he told you that your card is not working gift card, in fact, he didn’t want to pay you. Second, the middleman is looking for an unreliable buyer, he blocked you after he took your card. Third, there may be has some issues with your card at the time of purchase.

This happens many times, for example when someone tries to buy a pair of shoes with a Nike gift card, the gift card’s balance was already zero before it was taken out of the bag.“This card was given to me by my girlfriend in America. I have never given it to anyone. Why is it a used card?”explained Benjamin,who found his card during the transaction was a used card.Although gift card issuers are increasing their security, and there are some steps that consumers can take to be even more secure.

Gift card inspection

When you go to the store to buy a gift card, please carefully check whether the package is complete, make sure that the PIN of the gift card is not tampered with traces. if there is anything suspicious, please change a new gift card.

Tips:

1.Choose a reliable store

2.Take the gift card from the back  

3.Buying gift card online is safer

Be vigilant about your balance

Some people are cautious and check their card balance on the website as soon as they get a card from a store. Avoid the scammers of unofficial websites, which may eat your card when you upload it, even if you check the balance and your money is already in their stomach.If you need to check your balance, use the website on the back of the gift card.

Keep your information

Once you get your cards, keep them safe and don’t reveal your card information to anyone. Maybe you posted the gift cards your girlfriend bought you to show your friends, and by that time, some thieves have already targeted your cards. Don’t forget to keep your activation receipt; this is the best evidence for a new card. A smart cheater will pretend to be the representative of each organization to ask you for your personal information. At this time, you should improve your vigilance, do not easily believe anyone, and please identify the official number.

Be cautious when selling gift cards online

Choosing a trading site with its own system and website to sell your gift cards is half the battle. Most of the big platforms that are searchable in Chrome are ones you can trust. Google is known not to include companies that are scammers. Above all, be sure to avoid buyers whose exchange rates are much higher than the market. This is a new kind of deception. The high price is just an excuse; the real intention is to swallow your card.

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