Key Points

Scammers request funds via gift cards because they are incredibly hard to track. Once a gift card number and PIN is shared, they can access the funds on the card – and it’s difficult to know the identity of who cashed it.

A red flag of this type of scam is the fact that a purported organization is asking to be paid in gift cards in the first place. No legitimate organization, such as the IRS or a financial institution, will ever ask to be paid in gift cards.