Gift cards can be scanned remotely. Don't buy gift cards.

Murrmurr

Murrmurr

SF VIP
Location
Sacramento, California
The marriage of thieves and technology.

Gift-card scanning can now be done remotely. This isn't actually new, but more criminals know how to do it. They don't have to go into a store and scan the cards with a device, they use a program that finds batches of not-yet purchased gift card numbers, and the thief then stores them in a personal data base.

The moment you put money on the card..at the time of purchase..the amount is immediately auto-transferred to an account set up by the thief. This happens before the card is even activated.

And apparently, businesses that offer gift cards do not accept any liability for this. For example, if you buy a Walmart Gift Card, some restaurant card, or a clothing store gift card, and the card doesn't work because some thief already stole the money, the business does not refund the amount you put on it.

These businesses know what's happening. A customer service rep at a Walmart in Colorado said that, over the past several months, she deals with this complaint multiple times every day....it happened to my cousin, Nadine, who lives there, and she told me all this. These store's computer systems can even tell what state the money went to (if they run the analysis). Nadine's $150 went to an account somewhere here in Calif., but the rep said the system doesn't give any other details, like what bank, account name, etc. (Nadine didn't believe that part).


Anyway, my friends, I don't recommend buying gift cards for people on your Christmas list this year. At least be aware of the risk.
 

Teacher Terry said:
This has been going on for a while and I don’t buy gift cards because of it.
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Yeah, that Walmart rep said it's been going on for a year or so. The thing is, more and more scammers and thieves can get that software pretty easily, so it's really been blowing up the past several months.
 

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Gift cards are a ripoff even if the scammers don’t take advantage of them. It’s An interest free loan to somebody. And that somebody is hoping you forget about it, or spend most of it and forget the balance. Just send them cash. Cold Hard Cash. They can spend that anywhere.
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Nothing sounds more like you bought a Xmas present just 15 minutes ago in a gas station than a gift card. It's every 92 year grandmother's wish is to have a crummy gift card from Home Depot. The idea that the only ones, who use them are crooks and thieves, is a tip off of how great they are.
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Wow. Someone is Grinching hard.

I must differ. My kids play video games. I know nothing about what games they're playing or what games are coming out. I give them $100 gift cards every year, and they are always very happy to get them.
 
Brookswood said:
Gift cards are a ripoff even if the scammers don’t take advantage of them. It’s An interest free loan to somebody. And that somebody is hoping you forget about it, or spend most of it and forget the balance. Just send them cash. Cold Hard Cash. They can spend that anywhere.
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My grandkids love getting gift cards...well, they did, when I used to buy them. Safely. My grandson's favorite was for a store that sold video games, movies, and posters. Ariel liked ones from trendy clothing shops. They preferred them to cash because they liked the experience. They're past that now.

When gift cards were a pretty new thing, the person redeeming them had to pay a fee the first time they used it, which was deducted from the card. It was basically the interest, usually around 17% of the card's value. That didn't last long.
 
I learned never to send gift cards through the mail. It's the same as mailing cash. I once sent one for Bed Breakfast & Beyond to my granddaughter, who had recently married and was setting up their first home, and I thought that would be a useful gift. But it never arrived, she said afterward that mail often was delivered to the wrong apartment, and there was no refund available. I never used them again.
 
Dave03 said:
We actually have a small stocking that hangs on the tree every year that is specifically for gift cards, so they don't get lost in the shuffle.
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That's pretty cool, but there's been a massive increase in gift card number theft. That's what the OP is about.

There's an apparently easily accessible software program that generates thousands of random gift-card numbers per minute, and immediately flags ones that get purchased at the time of purchase. Then, whatever amount the buyer puts on the card is auto-transferred to a bank account (or gift card) belonging to the thief.

Thieves used to have to use a device to scan gift cards on display at stores where they're sold. Now they can steal the money from the comfort of the couches they bought with other people's money.
 
Murrmurr said:
That's pretty cool, but there's been a massive increase in gift card number theft. That's what the OP is about.

There's an apparently easily accessible software program that generates thousands of random gift-card numbers per minute, and immediately flags ones that get purchased at the time of purchase. Then, whatever amount the buyer puts on the card is auto-transferred to a bank account (or gift card) belonging to the thief.

Thieves used to have to use a device to scan gift cards on display at stores where they're sold. Now they can steal the money from the comfort of the couches they bought with other people's money.
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Not going to live my life in paranoid fear.
 
Sunny said:
I learned never to send gift cards through the mail. It's the same as mailing cash. I once sent one for Bed Breakfast & Beyond to my granddaughter, who had recently married and was setting up their first home, and I thought that would be a useful gift. But it never arrived, she said afterward that mail often was delivered to the wrong apartment, and there was no refund available. I never used them again.
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Do you know if people can buy store credit instead of a store gift-card? Oh, wait...that's pretty much what a gift registry is, right? So, no card involved.
 
I'd be nervous to buy a gift card at the store since I've heard of this scam a few times. I just buy eGift card from Amazon, they seem to be a safe method and you can set them up to not be delivered (emailed) until a date you specify.
 
After reading all the comments in here about gift cards, e-cards, and so on, I decided some of those risks were as bad or worse than the risk of just mailing cash. So, I just mailed it, and stopped thinking about it. If they don't get it, then I'll do something different.
 
Aunt Bea said:
Why limit people’s choices with a gift card? 🤔

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I think it just seems a little more special to have a card from someone in your wallet than to have cash from them. Cash that immediately got mixed up with the rest of your cash so that you won't even be thinking of them when you spend it. At least it's not as choice-limiting as a pair of socks. Not that there's anything wrong with socks, I could use some cute ones.
 
Della said:
I think it just seems a little more special to have a card from someone in your wallet than to have cash from them. Cash that immediately got mixed up with the rest of your cash so that you won't even be thinking of them when you spend it. At least it's not as choice-limiting as a pair of socks. Not that there's anything wrong with socks, I could use some cute ones.
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My g-kids got all excited about getting a gift card until they reached their teens, and even preteens. Then they preferred cash. (lots and lots of cash :p)

What else works, though, is buying a prepaid credit card from your bank. Those might be safe from this particular scam, but even if they aren't, a bank will cancel that card, refund, and issue another if you want. Or, at least my bank does.
 
And so can credit cards, so use RFID shields or wallets for them or put them in aluminum foil "jackets". I used to hear about not buying gift cards that are out in the open (eg: on those store racks), not locked away, but I guess even those are fair game in today's world.
 
I have never had a problem with any gift cards that I have given out. Never had a problem with any gift cards that I got. So it's not that wide spread, or dangerous. I have been using them for years and giving them out for years. Never a problem.
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Nothing sounds more like you bought a Xmas present just 15 minutes ago in a gas station than a gift card. It's every 92 year grandmother's wish is to have a crummy gift card from Home Depot. The idea that the only ones, who use them are crooks and thieves, is a tip off of how great they are.
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Some people would rather receive a gift card than a hideous gift.
 

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