Cedar Hill Police Department has sounded the alarm that criminals are tampering with gift cards, cloning them, and then sneakily returning them to store racks. The scam has been reported in Cedar Hill and various other locales, preying on unsuspecting buyers.
Here's how they manage to perpetrate the fraud: scammers are duplicating the gift cards and placing them back for sale. When a shopper goes to legitimately buy and load one of these tampered cards, they don't realize they're also activating the cloned card held by the scam artist. The Cedar Hill Police Department Police warn, "Once a consumer legally purchases the card and the money is loaded by the cashier, the cloned card can be used. This also leaves the legally purchased card with a zero balance."
This devious method is not only innovative but also leaves victims blindsided, as they only discover the scam upon trying to use their new gift cards. The authorities urge the public to scrutinize gift cards before buying them, checking to ensure that they have not been previously opened or tampered with in any way.
Consumers are advised to double-check the packaging of gift cards and to consider alternate methods of giving. "Use caution and try and verify that the gift card being purchased has not been previously opened," the Cedar Hill Police Department advises. This advice cannot be overstated, as the convenience of gift cards has become a double-edged sword in the hands of unscrupulous scammers.
