On 12/8/21, the Federal Trade Commission issued a data spotlight that shows consumers reported losing $148 million in scams where gift cards were used as the form of payment , in the first nine months of 2021. That amount is more than was reported in all of 2020.
According to the spotlight, nearly 40,000 consumers reported using gift cards to pay a scammer in that time frame, which draws from fraud reports submitted to the FTC by consumers. Most often, consumers reported paying scammers who were impersonating large companies or government agencies.
One new development noted in the spotlight is the emergence of Target gift cards as the most popular choice for scammers in the reports received by the FTC. Target gift cards accounted for about $35 million in payments to scammers, more than twice as much as any other brand of gift cards. The average amount lost when consumers paid with Target gift cards is $2,500, which was higher than any other brand of card. Nearly a third reported losing $5,000 or more.
Read the full FTC release here.
