Careful with those Gift Cards

[fistfulladirt]

Wife went to use a $50 Big Box store gift card that she received this Christmas. Found out there was only $5 left on this new card and her reaction wasn’t pretty!

Seems thieves just steal the card off the shelf, get the pin and info, return the card and monitor when card has been purchased/activated, then presto, cha-Ching!

[ToddsPoint]

It never fails to amaze me at the scams people can come up with. Clever people that should be using their smarts for good instead of evil. Gary

[jeff of pa]

I ALWAYS Use Gift Cards immediately.
If I were to Buy one for someone, I'd use one from the Bottom/Back of the Pile.
odds would be less likely someone attempting that, would want to be waiting a long time
and would be better off gambling on the first dozen in the row, as most would grab from the front
especially if they are hanging on a card rack, take the entire row off and take one of the last 3
even when the store restocks they add to the front, so those last 3 were probably there since the beginning of time
or given up on by the time they are reached

[pepperj]

Never have an issue with this gift giving/receiving.

[Jon Stewart]

Hate them. They are the biggest scam in retail out there. Just wonder how many get lost or un-used?

[billb]

Thank you for the alert ..I will also pass this information to family and friends

[Xraywolf]

Never have an issue with this gift giving/receiving.

Counterfeit cash used to purchase PlayStation 5

Counterfeit cash was used to defraud a Dearborn man who attempted to sell a Sony PlayStation 5 for $850 on Jan. 3 to a customer he met through the Facebook Marketplace application.
The victim said he met the customer in the Dearborn Walmart parking lot, 5851 Mercury Drive, and was paid with 17 fifty-dollar bills.
However, when the seller tried to use one of the bills afterward to purchase gasoline, the clerk told him that the currency was counterfeit.
The victim then contacted Dearborn police officers, who took the bills into evidence, and contacted a U.S. Secret Service field office.

The man who paid with counterfeit cash was described as a black male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighing about 165 pounds, and wearing a gray Nike hooded sweatshirt and sweat pants, a gray baseball cap and a gold chain, who drove a newer model white Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan.

https://www.pressandguide.com/news/c...48a0ada95.html

[Gare]

Never have an issue with this gift giving/receiving.

That DON'T WORK !!!! To prove it send me one and watch !!!! LOL

[Trezurehunter]

Interesting post. I never would have thought that about gift cards, but I'm not a thief either. Thanks for the information. I like Jeff of pa's idea of grabbing them from the back of the rack. It makes sense.

[GLekter]

I don't really believe in gifts cards, but I once earned such a card on an online platform that has several online stores.

[SusanMN]

The only way they could get the pin is to scratch off the coating covering the pin on the back. So make sure your card isn’t tampered with. And make sure if you give a card that you give the person the receipt with it. A $5 card in place of a $50 could be a cashier scam or mistake.

I have found a number of gift cards in parking lots, by the way, so be in the lookout for them. I always pick them up and check their balance and I have only had one card with a zero balance and the others from $5 to $25 on them. Some years back I also had a bonanza find in a used purse from the goodwill. A $100 visa, a $25 Sears and a $50 Sears card, all good.

[Mud Hut]

I buy gift cards from time to time, but I NEVER buy the first ones on the hook.

[crashbandicoot]

Never have an issue with this gift giving/receiving.

Cash makes no enemies,lets be friends!

[boogeyman]

Counterfeit cash used to purchase PlayStation 5

Counterfeit cash was used to defraud a Dearborn man who attempted to sell a Sony PlayStation 5 for $850 on Jan. 3 to a customer he met through the Facebook Marketplace application.
The victim said he met the customer in the Dearborn Walmart parking lot, 5851 Mercury Drive, and was paid with 17 fifty-dollar bills.
However, when the seller tried to use one of the bills afterward to purchase gasoline, the clerk told him that the currency was counterfeit.
The victim then contacted Dearborn police officers, who took the bills into evidence, and contacted a U.S. Secret Service field office.

The man who paid with counterfeit cash was described as a black male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighing about 165 pounds, and wearing a gray Nike hooded sweatshirt and sweat pants, a gray baseball cap and a gold chain, who drove a newer model white Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan.

https://www.pressandguide.com/news/c...48a0ada95.html

The test pens can be had for a buck or two, blacklight flashlights for around five bucks. Never yardsale without em! Banks!?!? We had a lady come in to pay on a commercial account with almost all counterfeit bills >>> she'd just gotten from her bank<< just minutes before.

[fistfulladirt]

The test pens can be had for a buck or two, blacklight flashlights for around five bucks. Never yardsale without em! Banks!?!? We had a lady come in to pay on a commercial account with almost all counterfeit bills >>> she'd just gotten from her bank<< just minutes before.

Her bank sucks!