Ridgefield Police Warn Of Gift Card Scam

RIDGEFIELD, CT — Police are warning residents not to fall for a scam that seeks to take advantage of the current high gas prices.

Scam victims will see a post on social media, get an email, or take a survey that says they won a $500 gas station gift card. Currently, the scam claims to be from Shell, but other brands are possible.

The victims will then pay a small fee, but will later find their accounts debited for larger amounts which they never approved.

According to the Better Business Bureau's Scam Tracker, one victim complained: "They said I won a Shell gas card and had to pay $1.95 for shipping. A day later, they took $89.95 out of my account. I called about the charge, and they fixed it, but the next day, another $89.95 was taken out again."

In addition to credit card information, the scam may also request other personal details. Some consumers say they were asked to fill out a form and provide their name, phone number, physical address, credit card information, and other details.

Sharing these details with scammers can open you up to identity theft, police warn.

"Never give out your personal information and always confirm who you're speaking with, by looking the company, facility or individual up and calling them back," Ridgefield police officials posted on social media. "And as the old commercial said, 'You can't win the Australian Lottery if you've never been to Australia...'"