The phone rings and the caller claims that your utilities will be shut off if you don’t immediately pay up—using a gift card. Or he says you’ve won a prize, but to claim it, you must first use a gift card to pay an upfront fee.
Gift cards are popular and convenient… and not just for gifts. Con artists have latched onto gift cards as a quick form of payment in their scams. We need state legislators to step up to better protect us. AARP Iowa is advocating for common sense legislation that would require retailers selling gift cards to post a notice informing consumers about what gift card scams are and who to contact if they suspect a scam.
AARP Iowa is encouraging local groups to schedule AARP Fraud Watch Network presentations in 2022. Trained volunteers are eager to help protect older Iowans by sharing the latest information about how to spot and avoid financial scams.
Phishing scams aim to acquire valuable personal and financial data — such as your Social Security number, credit card details or passwords for online accounts — to steal your identity, your money or both. They are mostly associated with email but can come in many forms, including social media, pop-up ads, “vishing” (voice phishing by phone), “smishing” (phishing by text message) and “pharming” (drawing victims to bogus websites).