Gift Card Scam: Know When to Share Your Information

If a payment has to be made, how would you go about it? The typical course of action would be to choose to pay via UPI or do a bank transfer. What if you receive a phone call saying you need to make a payment, and the mode of payment is via a gift card, what would you do?

Overview: 

Gift cards, or specifically e-gift cards, are now a popular gifting alternative that have become the go-to option for birthdays, weddings, and other last-minute presents. Since gift cards are anonymous, untraceable, and not permanently linked to one person, it has unfortunately given scammers a way to use them as bait to dupe innocents of their money.

Scams involving gift cards are becoming increasingly common and it is thus important to understand how it works so that you can safeguard your money and your personal information.

Let’s dissect Gift Card frauds – what they are, how they operate, and how to keep safe.

What is a Gift Card scam?

In a Gift Card scam, a scamster approaches a potential victim and tricks them into buying a Gift Card. After the purchase, scammers use deception and false pretenses to obtain the gift card number, code, PINs, etc. associated with the gift card. Once the scammers have the necessary information, they quickly redeem the value,  leaving the victims with little to no chance of recovering their money.

How does a Gift Card scam work?

Gift Card scams typically follow a pattern, here is the breakdown of how fraudsters play out.

1. Scammer pretends to be someone you trust

The scam starts with a phone call, email, message, or even a DM on social media. The scammer might pretend to be:

• Your manager or colleague
• A family member in distress
• A government agency
• A tech support agent
• A recruiter offering you a job

2. They create urgency

Scammers use panic or pressure tactics to get you to act fast. Common deception stories include:

• “I’m in a meeting and need these gift cards urgently.”
• “Your account will be suspended unless you act now.”
• “There’s a legal issue and you must pay using gift cards.”
• “We need this to complete your onboarding/job kit.”

3. They ask you to buy gift cards

You’re instructed to buy specific gift cards (PhonePeEGC, QWIKCILVERGC, Amazon, Apple, Google Play, etc.) and in some instances, purchase multiple cards of high value.

4. They ask for Gift Card details

Once you buy the cards, they’ll ask for:

• The 16-digit Gift Card number
• The Gift Card PIN
• Details of the card or receipt

5. They use the Gift Cards immediately

Scammers redeem the value instantly for personal use or resell the cards online at a discount. Once that’s done, they disappear without a trace.

Common red flags:

• Suspicious payment requested via a Gift Card
• The message feels urgent, emotional or secretive
• You’re asked to keep it confidential
• Communication is via personal email or chat, not official channels
• The grammar, spelling or tone seems off

How to protect yourself?

• Never share Gift Card codes with anyone you don’t know or trust
• Verify requests for Gift Cards, especially if they seem out of the ordinary
• Be skeptical of urgent or unusual requests from colleagues or family
• Only purchase Gift Cards from official sources and for personal use
• Educate friends, family and colleagues – scammers often target older or less tech-savvy individuals

How to report if you are a victim of a Gift Card scam

In case you have been duped by a fraudster via PhonePe, you can immediately raise the issue in the following ways:

1. PhonePe app: Go to the Help section and raise an issue under “have an issue with the transaction” option.
2. PhonePe Customer Care Number: You can call PhonePe customer care on 80–68727374 / 022–68727374 to raise an issue, post which the customer care agent will raise a ticket and help with your issue.
3. Webform submission: You can also raise a ticket with the Phonepe webform: https://support.phonepe.com/
4. Social media: You can report fraudulent incidents via PhonePe’s social media handles.
   1. Twitter — https://twitter.com/PhonePeSupport
   2. Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/OfficialPhonePe
5. Grievance: To report a grievance for the existing complaint you can login to: https://grievance.phonepe.com/ and share the ticket ID previously raised.
6. Cyber cell: Lastly, you can report fraud complaints at the nearest Cyber Crime cell or register a complaint online at https://www.cybercrime.gov.in/ or contact the Cyber Crime Cell helpline at 1930.

Important reminder — PhonePe never asks for confidential or personal details. Ignore all mails claiming to be from PhonePe if they are not from the phonepe.com domain. If you suspect fraud, please contact the authorities immediately.