{"id":2287,"date":"2026-02-25T18:43:46","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T18:43:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/?p=2287"},"modified":"2026-02-25T18:43:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T18:43:46","slug":"february-2026-newsletter-electronic-gift-card-scams-are-on-the-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/february-2026-newsletter-electronic-gift-card-scams-are-on-the-rise\/","title":{"rendered":"February 2026 Newsletter: Electronic Gift card Scams are on the rise"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Electronic gift card\u00a0scams\u00a0are extremely common, and several students\u00a0and staff\u00a0at Loyola have recently been targeted.\u00a0These\u00a0scams\u00a0are simple but\u00a0very effective\u00a0because they rely on urgency and trust. It is important to understand how they work so you can recognize them and avoid becoming a victim.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What This Scam Looks Like<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this\u00a0scam, someone\u00a0typically\u00a0pretends to be your boss, professor, or internship supervisor. They may email, text, or even call you. The message often says they need your help\u00a0purchasing\u00a0gift cards and promise they will reimburse you later.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The scammer may claim the gift cards are for a charity, a staff appreciation event, or a\u00a0work-related\u00a0function to make the request seem realistic. In some cases, they spoof your supervisor\u2019s email address or phone\u00a0number,\u00a0so it looks like the message is coming from someone you know.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Several Loyola students have reported receiving these types of messages recently. The goal is always the same, to get you to quickly buy gift cards and send the codes to the scammer.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What Scammers Are Actually Doing<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no plan to reimburse you. Once you send the gift card codes, the money is gone. Gift cards are hard to trace and almost impossible to recover.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Scammers use social engineering techniques to make their messages\u00a0more believable. They often gather information about where you work and who your supervisor is by looking at public profiles such as LinkedIn. This is why it is important to be cautious about what personal details you share online. Avoid listing personal phone numbers on public profiles or resumes when possible.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What To Do If You Are Targeted<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you receive a message like this, do not respond or interact with the sender in any way. Do not click links, do not reply, and do not\u00a0purchase\u00a0anything.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are contacted by email, forward the message to ITS so it can be reviewed.\u00a0You should also report fraud to reportfraud.ftc.gov.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you did\u00a0purchase\u00a0gift cards, keep all receipts, packaging, and communication records. This information may help if you choose to file a report.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Think before you act. Scammers rely on urgency and pressure to make you\u00a0act\u00a0quickly.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A legitimate boss will never contact you\u00a0out of the blue\u00a0and ask you to buy gift cards. No Loyola employee or internship supervisor should ever request gift cards, cryptocurrency, or urgent financial transfers through phone, text, or email.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If a message includes urgency, secrecy, and gift cards, that is a major red flag.\u00a0Slow down and think critically before taking action.\u00a0Also be mindful of how much personal and professional information is visible on your public profiles.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Staying aware and informed is the best way to stay safe.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Introduction\u00a0 Electronic gift card\u00a0scams\u00a0are extremely common, and several students\u00a0and staff\u00a0at Loyola have recently been targeted.\u00a0These\u00a0scams\u00a0are simple but\u00a0very effective\u00a0because they rely on urgency and trust. It is important to understand how they work so you can recognize them and avoid becoming a victim.\u00a0 What This Scam Looks Like\u00a0 In this\u00a0scam, someone\u00a0typically\u00a0pretends to be your boss, professor, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2287"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2289,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2287\/revisions\/2289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/uiso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}