The caller usually tells you which gift card to buy.They want to scare or pressure you into acting quickly, so you don’t have time to think or talk to someone you trust. They say you have to pay right away or something terrible will happen. Scammers may tell you different stories to get you to pay them with gift cards, but this is what usually happens: And once they have the gift card number and the PIN, they have your money. If someone calls and asks that you pay them with gift cards, that’s a scammer calling. They’re more like cash: once you use a gift card, the money on it is gone. They also have fewer protections for buyers compared to some other payment options.

Gift cards are popular with scammers because they’re easy for people to find and buy. As soon as someone tells you to pay them with a gift card, that’s a scam. Gift cards are for gifts, not for payments.

What To Do If You Paid a Scammer with Gift Cards.

Identity Theft and Online Security Show/hide Identity Theft and Online Security menu items.

Unwanted Calls, Emails, and Texts Show/hide Unwanted Calls, Emails, and Texts menu items.

Money-Making Opportunities and Investments.

Jobs and Making Money Show/hide Jobs and Making Money menu items.Credit, Loans, and Debt Show/hide Credit, Loans, and Debt menu items.

Shopping and Donating Show/hide Shopping and Donating menu items.

Vanilla gift card google pay