SPOKANE, Wash. — With Christmas just days away, last-minute shoppers rushing to buy gift cards face a new threat: scammers who tamper with cards before customers even purchase them.
The holiday season has brought a surge in sophisticated scams targeting both gift card buyers and bank customers through fake texts, emails and phone calls.
Locals report receiving multiple fraudulent messages daily, with some falling victim to financial schemes that can drain accounts and damage credit.
“I get ’em in bulk, honestly. Just all over the place. Really… they just kind of come out of nowhere,” said Connor Gallagher, describing the constant stream of scam messages he receives.
The gift card scam represents a particularly troubling trend this year. Criminals visit stores and tamper with gift cards on display racks, stealing the card details before customers purchase them. When unsuspecting buyers activate the cards, scammers immediately drain the funds.
“People are finding that gift cards have been tampered with in stores, especially, like, you know, you go to like a big, big box retailer and they’ve got that kind of gift card kiosk,” said Jon Maroni from Numerica Credit Union.
The impact on families can be devastating. Ernest Young’s mother fell victim to one of these schemes and now faces significant financial debt as a result.
“My mother is one of them that has fell, falling for them. And now she’s in financial debt because of it,” Young said.
Financial experts emphasize that anyone can become a target, regardless of their knowledge or experience with money matters.
“The number one piece of advice I could give people is don’t be ashamed that you fell for a scam. I’m a financial professional. I have fallen for a scam myself,” Maroni said.
Beyond gift cards, scammers are flooding phones and email inboxes with messages claiming to be from banks, the U.S. Postal Service, the Department of Motor Vehicles and even state patrol agencies. These messages often include links designed to steal personal information or install malware on devices.
Some residents have developed strategies to avoid falling victim. “If it’s a text message, it just freaks me out, and I ignore it,” said Rowan Endres.
Financial institutions warn customers to be especially cautious about any message that contains links, as legitimate banks rarely communicate this way with customers.
“If you’re getting the text message and it has links in it, or if you’re in an email and it has links in it, we often advise not to click on those because, again, this is not one of our business practices,” Maroni explained.
To protect against gift card fraud, shoppers should carefully inspect cards before purchasing them. Any signs of tampering, such as scratched-off areas or loose packaging, should prompt customers to choose a different card or report the issue to store management.
“If you receive one and it looks tampered with, take it back to the retailer where it was purchased,” Maroni advised.
For those who do fall victim to scams, quick action is essential. Banks have specialized resources and procedures to help customers who have been targeted, but time is often critical in limiting damage.
Victims can also report scams to the FBI through their website, which helps law enforcement track patterns and potentially catch perpetrators.
As the holiday season continues, experts urge shoppers to remain vigilant while still enjoying time with family and friends. The key is balancing holiday spirit with healthy skepticism about unexpected messages and offers that seem too good to be true.
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