Physical warning signs
Look for a lifted security label, damaged scratch area, missing activation receipt, altered denomination sticker, or mismatched card edges.
Digital warning signs
Treat cropped emails, missing order context, mismatched sender names, and repeated forwarding artifacts as reasons to request source evidence.
What to do
Stop exposing the code, preserve the card and receipt, record the error exactly, and use issuer support.
Official and primary sources
Issuer policies can change. Open the source before making a decision that depends on current redemption or support terms.
