Here at Fluz, we ensure to secure and protect every Fluz account by enforcing security measures and recommending best practices. It's important to stay on top of scams, so here are some tips for identifying them.

If you ever feel your account security has been compromised, contact Fluz Support immediately at [email protected] or call +1 646-760-7479

Fluz strives to be a safe place for customers to purchase gift cards. We're working hard to ensure that only cardholders and account owners can link their payment methods on Fluz. However, Fraudsters or Scammers can still get a hold of your payment method's information.

If someone is promising something that sounds too good to be true (e.g., a “hack” or free money in exchange for you sending them a payment first), then it is almost certainly a scam. Always be wary of individuals promising you anything. What scammers do, by and large, is promise you something, take your money, and then never deliver on what they promised. Here is a list of common scams to help you avoid them:

Scammers will claim to have newborn puppies or pets and request a deposit to secure them. These scammers usually won’t communicate over the phone, post fake photos, and will offer to sell purebred, highly sought-after animals at an extremely low price. These scammers may request photos of your credit card/debit card or even prepaid gift card information as proof of payment to them. Do not do this!

Don’t send money to someone you don’t know who is promising to deliver you something at a later date. Always verify those you send money to and pay them after you receive that which you purchased.

Scammers will claim to be someone you know such as a family relative, your long-time friend, or even a colleague/boss at work. They will try to convince you that they need financial help and will create a sense of urgency. More often than not, they will contact you through fake social media accounts, text messages, or even fake company emails. They may request your sensitive information such as your payment details and have you send it to them. With Fluz, they might tell you to create a Fluz account, buy a gift card, and share with them the gift card's information. Don't trust this! This is a scam.

Mystery shopping is a method used by marketing research companies and organizations that wish to measure the quality of sales and service, job performance, and regulatory compliance, or to gather specific information about a market or competitors, including products and services. Scammers take advantage of this by impersonating a big company and may ask you to participate to be a "Mystery Shopper". In exchange, they will provide you with monetary rewards. However, to claim this reward, scammers will ask you for a "deposit" and this may be in the form of prepaid gift cards, your payment information, and even sensitive data. Scammers would ask for photos of your payment methods and once they have this, they can use your payment details and make unauthorized charges.

Scammers will claim to have the ability to “flip” your money, whether it's cash or cryptocurrency. They will promise to increase your money if you first send them funds (they sometimes say that this is a “deposit fee” or “account verification”). These scammers will take your funds and then never send you anything in return. If someone is promising you free money in return for sending them a payment, it is a scam. There are no legitimate businesses that flip cash. They are all scams.

Scammers can also reach out to you representing online marketplaces such as eBay, Etsy, Facebook Marketplace, etc. The scammer may claim to promise you goods without providing proof that those goods exist. They will ask you to confirm payment before they release the goods to you. This may be in the form of requesting your payment information, sensitive & personal information, and even photos of your cards. Never share this information with them! Most of the time, these marketplaces have guidelines on how to buy & sell items, so we encourage you to follow them. Never provide your payment information without actually receiving your goods.

Similar to the Payment Claiming Scam, scammers may even go beyond and show you proof of the payment that you "deserve" by sending you photos and even sending you actual cheques. with your name on it. However, in return, they ask you to send them a form of payment such as gift card payments, sharing your card's information, etc. Unfortunately, this is a scam because when you try to cash in the cheque, it will bounce off. After all, there's no actual money in them. No matter how real these may feel if someone is promising you money in return for sending them a payment, it is a scam.

Scammers will ask you to “claim” a payment that you “deserve” by sending money to them. These payment-claiming attempts are always scams. These come in the form of emails, texts, or even phone calls, and these scammers will often say that you have earned a lot of money. Sometimes, they create stories such as mentioning that there was an old relative of yours who left you a large amount of money in their will. However, to claim this, you would need to share some form of payment method to prove you're the right person. Never send money to another person expecting a larger payment in return. Just like with Cash Flipping, if someone is promising you free money in return for sending them a payment, it is a scam.

There is no such thing as “claiming” a payment by sending money to Fluz. Fluz will never request funds from a customer for any reason.

Scammers can also act as a car rental service or real estate brokerage and provide their services without ever providing proof that they exist. This includes promising to find you a cheap apartment or offering an apartment at a much lower rate than normal, but requiring you to send them a deposit first (e.g., before touring the prospective rental). The same goes for car rentals. They may ask you to send a deposit so they can reserve the car for you.

Never send money to someone you don’t know who is promising to deliver you something at a later date - like an apartment or car rental. If you can’t verify who someone is or the legitimacy of what they are offering, it’s probably a scam.

More questions? Feel free to reach out to one of our Fluz sidekicks. Use the Chat option at the bottom of your screen, or if you're on the app, go to Help and chat with us.