The Holiday Gift Card Scam That Could Leave You With an Empty Balance

Criminals can steal gift card numbers before shoppers purchase the cards, then drain the balances after activation.

Inspect packaging and keep your receipt.

Kenishirotie/Shutterstock You purchase a $100 gift card for someone on your holiday shopping list, tuck it into a greeting card, and feel good about having one more present finished.

A few weeks later, the recipient tries to use it.

The cashier checks the balance and delivers some unexpected news: There’s nothing left.

The card was purchased legitimately, activated at checkout, and never used by the person who received it.

Yet someone else has already spent the money.

This type of gift card fraud can begin before the customer even reaches the register.

The Federal Trade Commission has explained how criminals obtain gift card numbers and PINs from cards displayed in stores, then wait for unsuspecting shoppers to load them with money.

With holiday shopping underway, understanding how the scam works can help protect your gift budget.

How Gift Card Draining Actually Works Gift card draining involves criminals obtaining the information needed to spend a card’s balance without possessing the physical card.

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