Common Gift Card Scams

There are a variety of scams that ask people to make payments by email, phone, or text for items or services. Fraudsters use many methods to conduct scams, including requesting gift cards from well-known brands. We want to ensure that our customers are aware of scams that may request payment using Amazon.com Gift Cards.

Have you fallen victim to or been exposed to a scam?

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While the specifics of the scam may vary, scammers generally use common tactics:

  • Make contact by phone, email, through social media or online.
  • Create a sense of urgency (by offering a great price, mentioning a personal hardship/emergency or threatening consequences).
  • Ask for payment using Gift Cards.
  • Instruct the victim to purchase Gift Cards online or at a nearby brick and mortar store.
  • Demand or instruct the victim to provide the claim code and / or photographs of the physical Gift Card, then disappear.


Tips to stay safe online

  • DO NOT pay people or businesses with Gift Cards. Amazon gift cards can only be used for purchases online at Amazon.com.
  • DO NOT share Gift Card details with someone you don't know or trust: Once a claim code, from any Gift Card, is provided to a scammer, the funds on the card will likely be spent before you are able to contact law enforcement or Amazon.
  • DO NOT respond to an Internet listing or unsolicited e-mail or phone offer that sounds too good to be true. It most likely is too good to be true.
  • DO NOT share Amazon Gift Card claim codes, electronic gift certificates, or send money, in the form of physical cash, cashiers cheque, wire transfer, Western Union, PayPal, MoneyGram, or any other means, to any person claiming to be an authorized agent of Amazon or Amazon Pay seeking payment.
  • DO NOT make a payment to a seller who claims that Amazon or Amazon Pay will guarantee a transaction made outside of Amazon.com; or that claims Amazon will hold your funds, or refund your money if you are not satisfied with a purchase that you made offline.
  • DO NOT use an Amazon Gift Card in connection with claiming lottery or prize winnings, on the promise of receiving a large amount of money, or in exchange for a guaranteed a credit card or loan. If someone requires payment in the form of Amazon Gift Card in exchange for a large sum of money or a guaranteed payment method, you can be confident it's a scam.

More about scams

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Report a Fraud or Scam

You can report a fraud or scam in the following ways:

  • Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which handles complaints about deceptive or unfair business practices. To learn more about common gift card scams, visit https://consumer.ftc.gov/gift-card-scams. To file a complaint, visit https://consumer.ftc.gov/, call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or write to Federal Trade Commission, CRC-240, Washington, D.C. 20580.
  • If your complaint is against a company in a country other than the United States, or you want to find information on where to report in locations outside the United States, visit http://www.econsumer.gov.
  • If you believe you've fallen victim to or been exposed to a scam, contact us to connect with a member of our Customer Protection Review team. For us to assist you, we require that you sign in to your Amazon account, or sign up for an Amazon account if you don't have one already.
  • If you receive a suspicious call, or encounter any other uses of the Amazon.com name that you think may be fraudulent, please report it by following the guidelines from our Report a Scam help page

Common scams that may involve Amazon Gift Cards or other Gift Card brands sold by Amazon

Scammers use a number of different stories to try and encourage you to buy gifts cards for them. Common scenarios include:

Making payments to strangers scams

You receive an unsolicited email or phone call from an individual claiming to be a solicitor, the police or other representative for a friend or relative. Callers attempt to impersonate the family member directly, requesting a payment. You should always be suspicious of anyone that contacts you and demands money quickly.

Social Security or Identity Theft Scams

You receive an unsolicited email or phone call about a "problem" with your Social Security number, account, or benefits that you must resolve immediately, or you'll face arrest or other legal action. Or, the scammer says you have to make a payment to receive assistance for an identity theft issue or in exchange for a Social Security benefit increase. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from the Social Security Administration, or any another government agency, and they want you to pay a fine or fee using Gift Cards, prepaid debit cards, wire transfers, cash, or internet currency, it's a scam. Hang up and report it to the Social Security Office of the Inspector General online at https://oig.ssa.gov.

Learn more about Social security scams.

Fake Online Listings Scam

You find a lowered priced listing for products or services that require payment with a sense of urgency. If you are prompted to pay using Amazon.com or other Gift Cards sold on Amazon and to provide the claim codes via email or phone, this can be a scam. A legitimate transaction using Amazon Gift Cards can only be completed through our checkout page and will never occur off Amazon.com.

Job Offer Scams

You receive an unsolicited email or phone call suggesting you apply for an Amazon job where you can work from home. You may be told that you can work your own hours, and make thousands of dollars a month. Once the scammer informs you that you've received a job offer, they may request that you pay a start-up fee or purchase a starter kit with Amazon.com Gift Cards.

Don't respond to employment opportunities from cold-callers, over email, or on websites claiming to be affiliated with Amazon. Amazon posts Amazon job opportunities on Amazon.jobs, and don't require you to purchase equipment or pay initiation fees.

Learn more about Job offer scams.

Unsolicited Phone Call or Email Claiming to be Amazon

Scammers use fake caller ID information to trick you into thinking that they're someone who can be trusted. The practice is called "caller ID spoofing", and scammers can fake anyone's phone number. You may receive an unsolicited call from someone stating they're a member of Amazon Customer Service. They may say that your account is frozen and you must purchase Amazon.com or other branded gift cards and provide the claim codes over the phone to remove the freeze on your account. They might also ask for your Amazon password, full credit card ID, or bank account number. Amazon never calls you to ask you to purchase gift cards to unlock your account. Amazon never asks you to provide sensitive personal information like your social security number, tax ID, bank account number, credit card information, or Amazon account related information, e.g., your password.

Learn more about Caller ID spoofing.

Boss Scams

The scammer poses as a leader or member from your company claiming they need you to purchase Gift Cards on their behalf. Always check directly with your company via a different communication method to confirm this is legitimate before continuing.

Learn more about Boss scams.

Email or Text, or Fake Survey Scams

If you receive an email or text saying that you've been gifted an Amazon.com Gift Card, verify that it's from Amazon. Customers can send gift cards by text message. A text message Gift Card from Amazon will be specifically from this number: 455-72.

Surveys requesting you to input personal details including banking information in return for a Gift Card are common scams. Genuine third party surveys authorized to distribute Gift Cards in return for completed surveys will never ask you for sensitive personal information. See how to verify Amazon communications on our Identifying Whether an Email, Phone Call, Text Message, or Webpage is from Amazon help page

Tech Scam

You are setting up your prime video on your TV and a code shows up to go to our website www.amazon.com/mytv. At times, search engine results will show up with many links that look like Amazon links, show an error code when selected and provide a contact number for assistance. You can also receive a phone call or search the internet and get a fake Amazon number where you are prompted to download, and allow access to third-party remote access applications like Teamviewer, Anydesk, etc. This is a scam. Amazon will not ask for remote access to your personal device in order to assist registering your account to your device.

Blackmail Scam

You are being blackmailed by a person online, who is threatening to share sensitive information or content on social media platforms, or with the customer's family members. Please refer to FTC informationhttps://consumer.ftc.gov/scams and https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/data-visualizations/data-spotlight/2023/02/romance-scammers-favorite-lies-exposed. To report a scam, visit https://consumer.ftc.gov/