Gift Card Theft

The following was emailed to me by a friend:

Well the crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance they have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated", and then they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public. Please share this with all your family and friends...

Snopes says this is possible in certain cases. Read the whole article to discover ways to protect yourself and those for whom you buy gift cards from being defrauded of the card's purchasing power. If you're going to fork over money for a gift card, you'll want it to actually be worth something when you present it to your friend or loved one.