Gift card scammers

[Becks]

Corporate actually CAVED to the guy with the dying kid story and let him return the cards even though it says right on the cards: "CAN NOT BE RETURNED or redeemed for CASH."

And so another scammer gets rewarded, while legitmate customers will get the shaft. :sigh:

[Auto]

Never thought of that one. I'll bet stores sooner or later will have to keep them behind the counter and out of the customer's reach thanks to people who do that. I never would have thought of doing something like that, but I guess it can be done.

I'm only familiar with Apple's gift cards. They have two numbers, one that has to be scratched off to be visible and the other that the clerk activates upon purchase.

To use the card online with your PC to download music, you need both numbers. Calling Apple corporate if you only have the visible number on the back of the card won't help scammers.

Apple seems to have thought things thru far better than other retailers.

[AFpheonix]

Sad update folks:

Corporate actually CAVED to the guy with the dying kid story and let him return the cards even though it says right on the cards: "CAN NOT BE RETURNED or redeemed for CASH."

Man that makes me angry.

Can't you donate gift cards to charities? Corporate should have told him that with a shit-eating grin.
Way to go, corporate!

[hawkchick11]

I'm only familiar with Apple's gift cards. They have two numbers, one that has to be scratched off to be visible and the other that the clerk activates upon purchase.

Thats how the gift cards at Aero are, theres a little pin number that has to be scratched off to use. The policy was, if you went to activate the card and the silver part was scratched off, we had to cut up the card and throw it away.

[Pagan]

I get to the end of the order $482.65 and she writes the check and hands it to me and I ask her for ID.

Ok, this is a little off-topic. Just out of curiousity, do you guys charge sales tax for GCs? Are you outside the US? I'm just wondering because of the odd total. Where I work now, we don't charge sales tax and when I worked at the Victoria's Secret call center, they didn't add sales tax either.

Thread hijack over. We now return you to your regularly scheduled program already in progress!

[Crosshair]

Sad update folks:

Corporate actually CAVED to the guy with the dying kid story and let him return the cards even though it says right on the cards: "CAN NOT BE RETURNED or redeemed for CASH."

Man that makes me angry.

Call and ask them under what conditions you can return cards because apparently the "no returns allowed" rule has some loopholes. Have them explain the situations so you can better serve the customer and not have to have them go all the way to corporate to get the service they need.

Watch them backpedal/BS/etc.

[captainvegetable02]

The other half of the gift card scam is that people DO copy down the pin numbers as well, then use the cards online once they verified they've been activated. We were warned about that at my store a couple of weeks ago. We basically handle it the same way someone else mentioned...double check every card sold to make sure the strip over the pin number isn't scratched off, and if it is we have to give the card to a manager (who presumably reports it to corporate and then destroys the card). I haven't had one of those yet, but all of our giftcards are on little racks on the counter by the reisters...it would be pretty difficult for someone to stand there right in front of the cashier and copy down the whole GC number, scratch off and copy down the pin, then put the card back and walk away.

[Enjis]

At Macy's, the gift cards are on an envelope that folds back. The scratch-off part is hidden by the envelope, and you would have to pull the card off its backing to scratch off the PIN.
I had also heard about the "copy and call" scam, but when I found out about the PINs on the back, I was less worried about it.

However, what I KNOW thieves are doing is using stolen credit cards to buy VISA Gift Cards, and then using those cards to shop. If they are not deactivated, they can be used anywhere, the user does not have to sign the back, and no name is on the card...no ID is needed.
It is less risky than using the stolen credit card (on the chance that the owner will get wise, or the issuing bank will notice the unusual number of transactions.) and the thief does not have to show ID at all.

This happened with a 'customer' I waited on, and since I called security right after the 'customer' left (I knew something was wrong) they were able to contact the bank, contact the owner of the card used to sell the Gift Card, and cancel the card, and the gift cards he had bought from me with it. (ha! He'll have a sorry time when he goes to use those useless cards now!)

[DesignFox]

You know, all this talk about scamming and gift card theivery has me wondering- I had a lady come in one night...everything was weird about her. First she gave another girl some line about leaving a coupon in her car. The other girl actually told me, that she told the woman we would let her use it anyway... weird. I mean, we are a 'yes' place and we allow a lot of things, but usually we tell people to bring the receipt and coupon back and we will honor it then... Obviously, I have nothing to scan without the actual coupon...but I honor it anyway. Then she makes some big deal about having those mall gift cards for her daughter. That's why she needed that coupon for her purchase, because without it her daughter would not have enough money for her gift... anyway. she whips out said gift card-perfect and shiny all new.
I run it...it declines. oooook. The woman is INSISTING the card has 20 on it. The purchase is less than 20...if that were the case the card would scan fine. I try 4 or 5 times to no avail. She gives me a second mall gift card-that declines too. I suggest calling the 800 number to double check the balances but she thinks they will charge her for that service and refuses. She pays in cash, complains about the problems of mall gift cards and leaves.

Oh- and the kicker- when I showed her on her receipt what I did for her to honor her coupon- she says, "Oh, so next time I come back I can use that one I left in the car too, then!" Sure, we do something nice for you, and you gotta take advantage...But the whole situation makes me wonder about the gift cards she had...

[M_Sinistrari]

With the places I've worked for that offered gift certificates/cards, bulk purchases had to be handled by management only since most if not all of them ended up being one of the businesses in the area buying for thier employees for gifts.

Most were actually decent and called in advance to make sure we had enough in stock, especially the one legal firm that I kid you not, would be buying 200 at a crack.

[Jester]

...when I worked at the Victoria's Secret call center, they didn't add sales tax either.

I have to comment here. For Christmas I bought my stepsister a gift card for Victoria's Secret (since my stepfather told me that that is her favorite store). They charged me only the amount of the card--no tax, no shipping, no handling....just the amount of the card itself. Well, my stepsister got it the other day, and said it was awesome....came in a lovely envelope, and had ENGRAVED ON IT "To Stepsister, from Jester" in (I think) gold lettering or what not.

Now THAT is amazing customer service, if you ask me. Victoria's Secret knows how to do things right, it seems.

That is all I had to say. We now return you to your regularly scheduled rant and rave session.

[crabbycabbie]

On the cards with PINs the thieves will steal the cards and take them home and write down the number on front and scratch off the PIN then put them back on the peg in the store so they aren't risking anyone seeing them do the scratching off and writing down the numbers

The only way around that is if the person checking someone out who bought some of those gift cards checks to see if the PIN is uncovered(most people don't know the PIN is not supposed to be visible and some cards don't even have a PIN in the first place)

Everyone likes to say crooks are dumb but with some of these scams if the person used their brain for good instead of evil they might of ended up rich without breaking the law...instead they risk going to jail for what in the end might be small amounts

BTW Did you hear about this other scam they have concerning debit cards?

They go to a ATM and put a piece of X-ray film cut just so with notches 3/4 of the way down and slip it into where you put your card into the machine then glue the ends at the entrance...I've seen pics of it after it's all set up and unless you look VERY carefully you can't see the film

Now the victim puts his card in the machine and it eats it...it cannot go down because of the loop in the film and it can't come back up because of the notches in the film...the person who put the film in the ATM comes along and pretends to help...standing right near you as you try your PIN over and over until they have it memorised...when you finally give up and leave to call your bank they take the tape back out of the machine(your card along with it) and start the systematic looting of your account as quickly as possible

[FredKlein]

The PIN is not even needed. Crooks can just get the numbers , and re-encode the swipe on another card to have the same numbers. Go to store, hand over card that has "11111111111" printed on it, but "2222222222" on the magnetic stripe.
Only defense is for the cashier to compare the number on the card to the number that prints on the receipt. And who really does that, especially during the busy holiday season?

BTW Did you hear about this other scam they have concerning debit cards?...

Sounds Urban Ledgend-ish. Sure, it might work, but there are serious issues with it. For instance, if the plastic was glued securely, then how do the theives remove it? Why would someone type their pin in repeatedly with someone watching? Etc. Also, don't most ATMs simply ask you to 'dip' your card in a slot? I've only rarely seen the type that 'swallow' your card.

...

HOld on, I just did a search, and it appear completely true:

http://www.snopes.com/fraud/atm/atmtheft.asp

Dang, people are stupid, huh?

[RailroadMonster]

Imagine having to put back $482 worth of groceries because a customer tried to scam you.

... It's been done. Granted, it wasn't $400, maybe about half that, but it's still a good amount of groceries.

[crabbycabbie]

FredKlein I check over at Snopes all the time...like everyone I get a lot of goofy emails and I like to check there to see if the pics or stories are really true or just something someone made up

Last time I was there I saw the ATM scam