Avoiding Gift Card Scams

Gift cards are a popular holiday gift, but be careful. Gift card scams are the new fad out there in the world of financial frauds.

The National Retail Federation says that gift card sales increase in the billions each year. Most people spend $30 or more on gift cards that they give as holiday presents. Many people don't realize that the gift they are giving might be part of a scam.

One very popular scam involves people copying the gift card numbers that are hanging on the store racks. They then call the retailer's 800 number to check on the balances for the card numbers they have copied. When the cards are purchased and activated, the thief uses the card number to buy items online.

There are also many fake gift cards floating around out there. These have been stolen. You buy them online and give them as a gift only to find that they had never been activated.