According to the FTC, nearly 40,000 consumers used gift cards to pay scammers in 2021 alone. If you’ve been the victim of one of these confidence traps, whether it’s a romance scam, AI-assisted con job, sextortion operation, or something else, don’t assume that you’re out of luck because you’ve already paid your scammer. It might be possible for you to get the money refunded if you act quickly.
How to get your money back if you sent a scammer gift cards
According to the Federal Trade Commission, some gift card companies have begun freezing fraudulent gift card funds so criminals can’t collect, and they often allowing scam victims to get their money refunded too. So if you’ve been scammed, follow these steps:
Report it to the gift card company: Call the company that issued the gift card as soon as you realize you were taken. Give them the number of the gift card, your store receipt for the purchase, and any other information they request. The sooner you can contact them, the better your chance of a refund, but report any victimizations, no matter when they happened. There’s always a chance.
Ask for your money back: If the funds were frozen or the scammers haven’t used it yet, you might be refunded by the card company. Although, scammers are usually pretty quick to grab their cash.
Report the scam to the FTC: This might not help you get your money back, but accurate information on scams could help stop scamming as an industry.
How to contact gift card companies about scams
Below are fraud reporting instructions for 13 major providers of gift cards. If your card is not on the list, look for the company’s contact information online or on the card itself.
Amazon
Call 1 (888) 280-4331 and follow Amazon’s instructions.
American Express
Call 1 (877) 297-4438 and follow American Express’s instructions.
Apple, iTunes
Call 1 (800) 275-2273. Say “gift card” to connect with a live representative. Follow Apple’s instructions.
Ask if the money is still on the Apple or iTunes gift card. If so, Apple can put a freeze on it. Ask for your money back.
Best Buy
Call 1 (888) 237-8289 and follow Best Buy’s instructions.
eBay
Chat with eBay customer support, or have a representative call you back.
Keep a copy of the eBay gift card or your store receipt.
Google Play
Report the gift card scam to Google.
Ask for your money back. If the money is still on the card, Google can put a freeze on it. If you don’t have a Google account, fill out this form.
MoneyPak
Submit a fraud claim to MoneyPak.
ReloadIt
Call 1 (888) 633-9434 and follow ReloadIt’s instructions.
Sephora
Call 1 (877) 737-4672 and follow Sephora’s instructions.
Steam
Report the gift card scam to Steam through Steam Support.
Target
Call 1 (800) 544-2943 and follow Target’s instructions.
Vanilla
Call 1 (833) 322-6760 and follow Vanilla’s instructions.
Visa
Call 1 (800) 847-2911 and follow Visa’s instructions.
Walmart
Call 1 (888) 537-5503 and follow Walmart’s instructions.
Beware of “refund and recovery scams”
Among the most insidious scams are “recovery scams,” and if you’ve just been successfully scammed, you’re the target. Here’s how it works: Victims of a previous scam are contacted by what seems like a legitimate organization—the fraud team at a bank, a card company’s legal department, an organization dedicated to helping scam victims, etc.—and are asked to pay a fee or give up personal information so their scammed money can be returned.
This is either the original scammer double-dipping, or your information has been placed on a sucker-list and the sharks are circling. So don’t trust any unsolicited message from anyone saying they can recover your money. Either hang up/hit delete and forget it, or research the organization, and call them yourself instead.
How to avoid gift card scams
Scammers can be very persuasive, but there’s a simple rule to remember to avoid gift card scams: Legitimate businesses and governmental organizations don’t accept payments in gift cards. No legitimate individual can only be paid in gift cards either. So if someone scoffs at a check or a credit card payment, they are probably not on the level.
There’s a lot more to not being a victim of online scams, so check out Lifehacker’s guide to avoiding scams for more information.
Why do scammers use gift cards?
Online scammers mainly use these three instruments to separate people from their money: wire transfers from companies like Western Union, crypto currency, and gift cards. Unlike crypto currency and wire transfers, gift cards are easy for marks to buy—everyone knows there’s a whole rack of them at the supermarket.
They’re easy to drain for scammers too: Once a gift card’s numbers and PINs are given out to scammers, some cards (like Visa gift cards) are practically cash. While some card companies are taking steps to prevent fraud, gift card crime is difficult to track and prosecute. Many cards can be used internationally, and gift cards aren’t attached to an individual or account, since they’re meant to be given away, so catching grifters and holding them accountable is extremely difficult.