Beware. Gift card scammers are stealing your present

September 20, 2026 — 5:00am

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

Gift cards are an extremely popular present now thanks to how easily available they are and the number of major Australian retailers they cover. But, unfortunately, they’ve also become an increasingly popular target for scammers.

You’ve probably seen them hanging in just about every supermarket, petrol station and retail store around the country by now. The gift card’s outer packaging is still small enough to fit inside a birthday or Christmas card and, inside, the gift card itself can slip right into a wallet and looks like any other debit or credit card, but they tend to be more colourful and festive.

While gift cards for Coles, Woolworths, Apple, JB Hi-Fi, Amazon and UberEats are among the most commonly purchased, there are also options for cinema chains, eftpos-specific cards, and the highly popular “Him”, “Her”, “Baby”, “Teen” and “Kids” range – which can be redeemed across major retailers including Dymocks, Myer, Kmart, Ikea, Rebel Sport, Sportsgirl, Cotton On and dozens more.

It’s no surprise cards have exploded in popularity. Many of us are time poor and don’t have hours to search for the perfect gift. As well, cost-of-living pressures are causing many to curb luxury spending. The Australian Prepaid Card Association says the industry is now worth an estimated $21 billion in Australia alone.

Another lesser known perk of gift cards is that you can often use them to earn points with certain rewards schemes, meaning you can earn points while spending money. It was this selling point that convinced Melbourne artist Georgia Perry to buy four gift cards earlier this year from her local........

© The Age