Amazon gift card scams: why only scammers ask you to pay this way
Quick answer
Anyone who tells you to pay with Amazon gift cards is a scammer. No real business or agency takes payment that way. Stop, keep the cards and receipts, and report it to the card company and the FTC.
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How it works
The scammer's real aim is money that's hard to trace. They contact you by phone, text or email with a story: a problem with your account, a prize, a debt, an emergency with a relative, or a job. Whatever the story, it ends with a request to buy gift cards and read out the codes.
The FTC's advice is blunt: only scammers tell you to buy a gift card to pay them. Once the codes are shared, the scammer can spend the balance quickly.
The gift card is the payment method, not the pretext, so the same demand shows up behind many other scams, including fake government agents, fake tech support and fake bosses.
Red flags
- Any demand to pay with gift cards, for any reason
- Being told to buy cards at a store and read the codes over the phone or by text
- Pressure to act now and keep it secret
- A caller or message that claims to be an agency, a bank or a company you deal with
- Instructions to stay on the line while you buy the cards
Example message
There is a serious problem with your account. To fix it today, go to a store, buy [amount] in gift cards and send me the codes. Don't tell anyone, and call me back at [phone number] when you have them.
What to do
- 1
Stop and don't buy the cards
Hang up or stop replying. A legitimate company or agency will never insist on gift cards as payment.
- 2
If you already bought cards, keep them and the receipts
Contact the gift card company straight away with the card numbers and receipts and tell them it was a scam. Use the contact details printed on the card or on the company's own website.
- 3
Check for other damage
If you shared other details, change the passwords on those accounts and watch your bank statements. If you gave anyone remote access to your computer, call your bank from the number on your card.
- 4
Report it
Report the scam at reportfraud.ftc.gov. Reports help the FTC spot patterns, even when the money can't be recovered.
Report it
Check if your details are exposed with Serus
Scammers find your number and address on data brokers and people-search sites. Serus removes them.
Why you got it
Scammers need a way to reach you and a few details that make the message believable: your name, your phone number, your email, sometimes your address or the bank you use. They buy those details from people-search sites and data brokers, or pick them up from data breaches.
Serus finds the data brokers that list you and removes the listings, and it alerts you when your email or other data turns up in a breach, so fewer scammers can build a convincing message about you.
More Amazon scams
Frequently asked
Does Amazon ever ask for payment in gift cards?
No business or agency should demand payment in gift cards. If a message that claims to be from a company asks for them, treat it as a scam and contact the company through its own website or app.
Why do scammers want gift cards?
The codes can be used or sold quickly and are hard to trace, which makes them useful to scammers.
I read out the codes. Can I get the money back?
Contact the gift card company right away with the card numbers and receipts. Speed matters, but there is no guarantee.
Is this the same as a scam by Amazon?
No. Amazon is a name scammers use or a card they ask for. The scam is the person demanding payment this way.
Sources
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