SOURCE:  Andrew Rayo, Consumer Education Specialist

Doing some holiday shopping? Here’s a type of gift card scam to look out for: scammers can get the gift card number and PIN before you buy the card. So if gift cards are on your holiday shopping list, keep reading.

Scammers sometimes tamper with gift cards in-store displays. They might remove the protective stickers from gift cards or even scratch off the back. That way, they can steal the card numbers and PIN. With those numbers, a scammer can get any money you put on a gift card — even if they don’t physically have the card. They just wait for you to load money on the card and — poof! — it’s gone.

If you’re buying gift cards this holiday season:

• Check for signs of tampering. If it looks like someone scratched off the back of a gift card or removed any stickers, tell a cashier or manager. Scammers might tamper with gift cards in batches, so if you see something suspicious on one card, consider looking at a different store.
• Pay by credit card if you can. You get the most protections when you pay with a credit card. If you run into problems and file a chargeback, your credit card will investigate, and you might get your money back.
• Keep copies of the gift card and store receipt. If the gift card doesn’t work or doesn’t have any money on it, the number on the card and store receipt will help you report to the gift card company. The sooner you report, the better. You can also report fraud to the FTC.

Report gift card scams at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Learn more about this and other gift card scams at ftc.gov/giftcards.