It was one of the happiest days of their lives:\u00a0April 20, 2019,\u00a0when Anand Pavamani and his wife got married.<\/p>\n
Among the presents\u00a0from family and friends, the couple received a stack of gift cards. They waited until after moving into their new\u00a0home\u00a0to spend one in particular \u2014 a “Happy Home”\u00a0gift card, valid at several stores, including\u00a0Home Depot.<\/p>\n In late September, they went to buy a lawnmower, but got a shock at the checkout.<\/p>\n “The cashier was having troubles with it,” said Pavamani, 43, who works from home in Whitby, Ont., as a media producer.<\/p>\n Turns out the $100 balance was drained, even though the couple hadn’t touched the card.<\/p>\n They left the store empty-handed and Pavamani started what would become more than a month of detective work \u2014 dozens of phone calls\u00a0and emails\u00a0with little luck. He didn’t want his friends’ kind gesture to go to waste.<\/p>\n “It’s their hard earned money,” he said.<\/p>\n The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre told CBC Toronto it is aware of organized retail fraud but doesn’t track how often it happens.<\/p>\n These kinds of cases rarely cross Det. Doris Carriere’s desk, but the veteran Durham Regional Police officer believes that’s because many people choose not to report it.<\/p>\n There are countless ways to steal card balances, including something called card cloning, he says.<\/p>\n All it takes is a card-copying machine, easily available online and relatively cheap, and a stack of blank cards, Carriere adds.<\/p>\n “With the software on the computers we have, it’s not that difficult,” said Carriere.<\/p>\n Pavamani says one of the most frustrating things about the entire experience is the lack of response from retailers.<\/p>\n Shoppers Drug Mart, where the couple’s friend purchased the card, said in an email to Pavamani, “Shoppers Drug Mart is solely responsible for activating gift cards.” The store advised him to reach out to Home Depot.<\/p>\n Home Depot confirms the gift card was swiped and used twice just after the couple’s wedding, on April 30 and again on May 2, at a location in North York. The chain says it only keeps security camera footage for three months, making it impossible to prove who used the card.<\/p>\n “It seems like every retailer is just, like, wiping their hands clean,” Pavamani said.<\/p>\n He filed a police report, and also reached out to the gift card company, US-based Blackhawk Network.<\/p>\n In an email to CBC Toronto, Blackhawk Network said: “While we don’t provide specific details about any ongoing security or fraud prevention measures, we can share that we have placed great care, thinking and effort in fraud technology and fraud prevention.”<\/p>\n Ontario’s Ministry of Consumer Affairs says there are things shoppers can do to protect themselves.<\/p>\n But cybersecurity expert\u00a0Claudiu Popa\u00a0believes there’s actually very little consumers can do when it comes to gift card scams.<\/p>\n “This is big business. And big business means people are doing it as part of their daily job,” said Popa. “They’re professionals.”<\/p>\n He recommends people buy gift cards online directly from retailers or not at all.<\/p>\n “The gift card fraud ecosystem is massive. And it presents numerous opportunities for mischief, for fraud, for scams. I personally stay away from gift cards,” he said.<\/p>\n Pavamani\u00a0ended up getting the $100 refunded\u00a0onto the gift card from\u00a0Blackhawk Network. But he believes it only happened\u00a0after CBC Toronto got involved.<\/p>\n He hopes his story inspires others to report to police if they think they’ve been scammed.<\/p>\n “A lot of other people are probably getting ripped off because it seems like the retailers aren’t doing anything.”<\/p>\n CBC<\/p>\nHow thieves can steal your gift card balance<\/h2>\n
Little response from retailers<\/h2>\n
Protect yourself from getting scammed<\/h2>\n
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