Coupons are a great way to get discounts on everything from groceries to clothing, but you have to be careful not to fall for coupon scams.

What is a coupon scam?

Coupon scams, also called coupon fraud or coupon fraud, are any type of scam in which fraudsters use coupons in illegal ways to mislead consumers or retailers and steal money.

For example, scammers can create fake coupons and use them to get huge discounts on products themselves or sell them to unsuspecting shoppers. Alternatively, retailers can manipulate numbers (such as prices or sales data) so that they don't actually lose anything when offering discounts through coupons.

Who Falls Victim to Fake Coupon Scams?

Coupon fraud can be committed by both customers and retailers. Whether you own a store that offers coupons or you're a consumer who uses coupons, it's important to know what types of coupon scams to be wary of.

What constitutes coupon fraud? 1. Copy the coupon

Scammers often create fake coupons by simply copying existing coupons and trying to use them at different locations in the same store.

2. Printing too many coupons

Another common method of creating fake coupons is to print multiple coupons in an attempt to trick the retailer into giving them the same discount multiple times.

3. Decode the coupon

All the numbers on the coupon barcode indicate what it is for, so scammers try to decode those numbers and create fake coupons for different products.

4. Buy or sell coupons

The coupons are free and intended for use by the receiving customer or their friends or family, but scammers commit coupon fraud by selling them for a profit.

5. Coupon Stealing Notice

Retailers often give out coupons in newspapers and magazines, and scammers will go around stealing these coupons to get them all.

6. Retailer coupon fraud: using coupons to redeem unsold products

In some cases, retailers will alter their records to make it appear that products were sold using coupons in order to obtain rebates or refunds from suppliers/manufacturers.

Retailer coupon fraud: Raising prices to offset losses

Another type of retailer coupon scam involves the retailer raising the price of a discounted item so you think you are getting a good deal when you are paying the original price.

The biggest coupon scam in U.S. history

Using fake coupons is no joke. In 2020, a Virginia Beach woman was sentenced to 12 years in prison for running a coupon counterfeiting ring that deducted an estimated $31.8 million from retailers through false discounts.

The woman ran the coupon scam with her husband for about three years before they were caught. They created fake coupons that were almost identical to the real ones, but with much higher discounts, and distributed them through Facebook and Telegram. Sell ​​it to bargain hunters.

Eventually, their illegal activities caught up to them, but there are many other coupon scammers running similar operations that you need to be wary of.