Counterfeit is where fake gift cards or vouchers for a high street retailer or business are made by someone to look genuine and sold to consumers. In America it is reported that 1 in 4 people have had a Gift card that was fake.
Protect yourself
- Buy gift cards or certificates direct from the retailer or through a reputable third-party supplier.
- Search online to find out more about who’s offering you the certificates; do they have a bad reputation elsewhere, or is there very little known about them?
Spot the signs
- You’re offered gift certificates from a person or company you’ve never heard of before.
- The certificates are offered to you at a lower price than the value they can be used for in store.
- The cards or certificates look badly made or poorly printed, or they don’t have any visible security features to prove they’re genuine such as a hologram sticker.
How it happens
When a fraudster sells a counterfeit gift card or certificate, either the consumer they have sold it to or the business they have counterfeited will lose out.
You will either be told in store that the gift card is invalid and can’t be used, or the cashier accepts the gift certificate unaware that it is fake and the business loses out.
More information can be found here – 5 gift card tricks targeting you this holiday season – CyberGuy