--- title: 'Tips for Holiday Gift Card Shopping' url: 'https://blog.datum-consulting.com/blog/tips-for-holiday-gift-card-shopping' markdown: 'https://blog.datum-consulting.com/blog/tips-for-holiday-gift-card-shopping.md' date: '2019-12-11' description: 'Gift cards are one quick way to get through your last-minute holiday shopping list. But before you give (and get) gift cards, here are a few things you need to know. Inspect gift cards before you buy. A gift card should have all its protective stickers in place. Report the card to the store if…' taxonomy: category: - blog tag: - scam - hacker - 'cyber criminal' - 'gift card scam' month: - December archives_month: - dec_2019 archives_year: - '2019' --- # Tips for Holiday Gift Card Shopping [ Home ](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/) Tips for Holiday Gift Card Shopping ## [Tips for Holiday Gift Card Shopping](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/blog/tips-for-holiday-gift-card-shopping) 11th Dec 2019 [scam](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/tag:scam#body-wrapper) [hacker](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/tag:hacker#body-wrapper) [cyber criminal](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/tag:cyber%20criminal#body-wrapper) [gift card scam](https://blog.datum-consulting.com/tag:gift%20card%20scam#body-wrapper) Gift cards are one quick way to get through your last-minute holiday shopping list. But before you give (and get) gift cards, here are a few things you need to know. - **Inspect gift cards before you buy.** A gift card should have all its protective stickers in place. Report the card to the store if anything looks scratched off or damaged. - **When you buy, save the receipt.** Keeping the gift card receipt can be helpful if you run into problems with the card. - **Treat gift cards like cash.** Report a lost or stolen gift card to the card’s issuer immediately. Most card issuers have toll-free numbers you can find online to report a lost or stolen card. Depending on the card issuer, you may even be able to get some money back. - **Buy gift cards from sources you know and trust.** Think twice about buying gift cards from online auction sites, to avoid buying fake or stolen cards. - **Read the gift card’s terms and conditions.** Know the deal you’re getting with gift cards. For example, are there fees every time it gets used – or if it sits unused? And here’s the most important gift card tip of all: - **Remember that gift cards are for gifts, not payments.** Gift cards are a scammer’s favorite way to steal people’s money. Anyone who demands that you pay them with a gift card, for any reason, is always a scammer. This includes calls from imposters claiming to be a family member with an emergency, calls from the IRS and Social Security, law enforcement, and utility companies. Simply put, never pay with a gift card. Report gift card scams directly with the card issuer, then report it to the FTC at [ftc.gov/complaint](https://www.ftc.gov/complaint). For more information, visit [ftc.gov/giftcards](https://www.ftc.gov/giftcards), and check out the below video. 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