Gift card payments

Last reviewed: 6 November 2026

A caller from the tax office says you owe a fine. Your “boss” emails asking you to buy gift cards for clients. A tech support agent says your computer is infected. They all end the same way: buy gift cards (Apple, Google Play, Amazon, Steam), scratch off the codes and read them out or send a photo. Once a scammer has the codes, the money is spent within minutes and is very hard to get back.

What it looks like

Town Hall (call)

This is Town Hall. You have an unpaid fine and a warrant has been issued. To avoid arrest today, buy £400 of gift cards at your nearest shop and read me the codes. Stay on the line.

A made-up example. Every name, number and link here is fictional.

The tell

No real bill, fine or tax is ever paid with gift card codes. Anyone asking for them is a scammer.

Other signs

You're told exactly which cards to buy, and where.
You're asked to stay on the line while you buy them, or not to tell the shop staff why.
Threats: arrest, a fine, your account being closed.
A boss or friend asks by email or message, and you can't reach them by phone.

What to do

Stop and hang up. Gift cards are for presents, never for payments.
If you've already sent codes, contact the gift card company straight away with the codes and receipt: sometimes they can freeze money that hasn't been spent.
Keep the cards and receipts, and report it.

If you already replied, tapped or paid

Call your bank straight away, on the number on your card (or 159 in the UK). Banks can sometimes stop or recover a payment if they hear quickly.
Change any password you typed in, on the real site, and turn on two-step sign-in.
Report it (below), and keep the messages and receipts.
Be careful of anyone who then offers to get your money back for a fee. That is a second scam.
Don't feel ashamed. Scams are written by professionals and fool careful people every day.

Report it

In the UK: forward scam texts free to 7726, and scam emails to [email protected].
Report fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040 (in Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101).
Elsewhere: your country's police or consumer protection service.

Sources

The advice here follows these official UK pages:

Practise spotting it

In Scam Town you get letters, texts and calls like these, decide which are real, and see the tell after every answer. You can also build scams yourself from ready-made pieces, which is the fastest way to learn how they work. It's free and plays in your browser.

Play Scam Town