How Walmart stopped elder gift card scams worth $4 million

According to court documents and the business, technology created by Walmart helped the retail giant discover and freeze roughly $4 million in gift cards that had been purchased by thousands of largely elderly victims under the guidance of con artists who defrauded them.

Following Walmart's notification, the U.S. Department of Justice recently had that money taken through a federal court proceeding in Arkansas. The money can now be claimed by scam victims.

A DOJ official praised Walmart's activities, saying what they were able to accomplish was amazing. The official talked with CNBC on the condition that they remain anonymous.

If senior Americans and others who lost money in these schemes are aware that they can claim their stolen money, the seizure of the gift card money is good news for them.

Walmart did, however, only save a small portion of the millions of dollars that are lost every year in so-called imposter schemes that rely on gift card purchases.

And in recent years, the quantity of money made through such methods has increased dramatically.

According to data from the Federal Trade Commission, customers reported losing $148 million in fraud where gift cards were used to pay con artists in the first nine months of 2021.

In contrast, the FTC reports that gift card fraud losses totaled $114 million for the entire year of 2020.

Gift card scams frequently involve callers, frequently from abroad, calling the victims and accusing them of owing money for a debt or necessary services and instructing them to travel to a store right away to purchase a gift card that may be used to settle the alleged bill.

“And if you like to save, be sure to click the link below to get $100 Walmart Gift Card Absolutely Free”: https://bit.ly/3OcF0D2