Even though is never a bad gift, after all, it can be used everywhere, there is a lot to be said for the use of gift cards. If you want to make it seem as though you have put some thought and imagination into a present while still providing the recipient with some degree of freedom, giving a gift card is the best bet. This means that you can say that you pondered over the present whereas the truth is that you probably left it to the last minute and buying a gift card is marginally better than sticking some money in a card or envelope.
However, any gift is better than no gift at all and if a number of people buy gift cards to give to someone, there is a lot to be said for what the recipient can do with a lot of money. If one person gives someone a gift card, they could maybe buy a game or DVD. However, if a number of people buy someone a gift card for the same store for their birthday, the recipient could actually buy a new games machine or a new DVD player. If there is some form of joined up thinking when it comes to gifting a gift card, there is a great deal that can be said for the benefits of taking this action.
There are Positive Uses for Gift Cards
This means that many people have seen the positive side of gift cards. There is also the fact that gift cards provide fraudsters and con artists with an opportunity to make money. No matter what medium you work in, when there is a good that is bought or sold, and some people will have access to these gift cards, it is somewhat inevitable that there will be fraudulent activity associated with these cards.
In fact, with modern technology being what it is, you will actually find that some fraudulent activity regarding gift cards relates to cloning gift cards. Cloning is a big problem for cards but most people associate cloning with credit or debit cards. When these cards are cloned, a lot of damage can be done but when gift cards are cloned, there can be a tendency to think that it is a victimless crime.
After all, if a debit card is cloned, the money taken from the card is money that would have previously been held in someone’s bank account. When gift cards are cloned, it shouldn’t really impact on an individual, it only impacts on a company. For many people, this is enough of a difference to consider it a victimless crime, but this of course isn’t the case. When companies suffer fraud, there can be consequences.
Prices will often rise as the business aims to offset the money that they lost while some people may end up with their jobs being at risk. This means that cloning of gift cards can be of interest and benefit to fraudsters but it can be damaging to the rest of us.
Arrest Followed a Police Raid
In the West Midlands in the middle of August 2015, a woman was arrested under suspicion of cloning gift cards at a store in the Black Country. It then transpires that the lady used these cards to make purchases online, buying toys and jewellery. Her home was raided by the West Midlands Police and the 28 year old woman was arrested after the raid. It transpired that there had been an 8 month investigation carried out after the initial reports of retail fraud offences were reported at the Merry Hill Shopping Centre, close to Dudley.
During the raid the officers found a large number of credit cards and gift cards. There were five other addressed searched at the same time and a quantity of controlled drugs were uncovered.
Dudley Police were represented by Detective Sergeant John Price who said; “We continue to make enquiries into this fraud investigation and the searches are just the start.”
This isn’t the most common type of fraud but an effective fraud defence solicitor will be at ease with working on this type of case. There will no doubt be a number of issues that can be argued against with respect to the allegations and the right type of fraud solicitor will prove invaluable in defending against allegations of this nature.
Andrew Reilly is a freelance writer with a focus on news stories and consumer interest articles. He has been writing professionally for 9 years but has been writing for as long as he can care to remember. When Andrew isn’t sat behind a laptop or researching a story, he will be found watching a gig or a game of football.