Online gift cards are the new trend of gifting people. Buying gift cards and delivering them to the person you are gifting has become easy and convenient. Many retailers have e-gift cards, and they are increasingly becoming popular. You can even buy gift cards with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
There are many gift card scams on the rise, and a scammer may trick you into purchasing a non-existent or inactive online gift card. The fraud may negatively affect retailers because they may have to reimburse money to the credit cards originally used to purchase the gift cards.
Here are some of the ways to make sure you are purchasing an authentic online gift card.
Purchase the gift card from a site or retailer you trust
There are many gift card merchants, but you cannot trust all of them. Consider purchasing your gift card from a reputable merchant. Do not buy from a random site just because they claim to have good deals on online gift cards.
Sites like Coingate are trusted and will even allow you to buy gift cards with cryptocurrencies. You can buy Walmart gift cards with bitcoin or use the gift card to buy cryptocurrencies.
There are sites that auction off gift cards online, and they may be running scams and frauds because the gift cards may be invalid or stolen.
Use the merchant’s site to check the authenticity of your gift card
If you buy an online gift card meant to be used at a certain retailer like Walmart or Amazon, the gift card codes should be able to reflect on their systems. The merchant’s site will also allow you to check the balance on your gift card.
If you doubt the validity of the gift card, contact the merchant and let them verify it for you. If you did not purchase it directly from the retailer’s site, contact the merchant who sold it to you and have them sort your issue. If the merchant is non-responsive, report the issue immediately to the relevant authorities.
Check the purchase receipt to ensure the gift card has been activated
When you purchase a gift card online, the purchase receipt will have to reflect the details of the transaction and whether the card is active. The retailers may have to perform certain security checks and approvals to avoid fraud cases. Once the screening is done, you will receive a receipt with gift codes and other important information via email or SMS text.
The receipt should match the online gift card you purchased. Ensure you enter the correct contact information when buying gift cards. Be as careful when doing this as you would have when you buy cryptocurrencies or send money through electronic payment.
Also, keep the receipt or gift code just in case you have an issue with the online gift card. It will help the gift card issuer resolve your problem or file a report when you suspect fraudulent activities with the gift card you purchased.
Beware of free online gift cards
Although it may seem like a great deal, no one will give you a gift card worth a lot of money for free just because you did the bare minimum, like taking a survey. Scammers may use this to get your personal information and use it for fraud.
You should be able to use the gift card to purchase items from the intended retailer or use it to buy bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on Coingate. Before submitting confidential information, check if the online site is genuine because they may use your information to carry out fraudulent activities.