There is one rule in this post, and it never has an exception. No real company, no government agency, and no honest person will ever ask you to pay them with gift cards. Not the IRS. Not Social Security. Not Medicare. Not your bank, your utility company, or a computer repair service. If someone asks for payment in gift cards, you are talking to a thief. Every single time.

Last year Americans filed more than 410,000 reports of gift card scams with the Federal Trade Commission, losing $212 million that they know of. Most people are too embarrassed to report it, so the real number is much higher. And people our age are the favorite target.

How the scam usually goes

It almost always starts with a phone call. The caller says he is from the IRS and you owe back taxes. Or from Social Security, and your number has been suspended. Or from Microsoft, and your computer is infected. Sometimes it is the cruelest version of all, a voice claiming your grandchild is in jail and needs bail money tonight.

Whatever the story, the next part is always the same. They tell you to drive to Walgreens, Walmart, or the grocery store and buy gift cards. Apple cards, Google Play cards, Visa gift cards, it does not matter. They often stay on the phone with you the whole way there and tell you not to talk to anyone. That is not customer service. That is a handler making sure nobody stops you.

Then they ask you to read the numbers off the back of the cards. The moment you do, your money is gone. It works like handing cash to a stranger, except the stranger is in another country and there is no way to knock on his door.

Why scammers love gift cards

Gift cards cannot be traced and cannot be called back. There is no fraud department to reverse the charge like a credit card has. That is exactly why crooks demand them, and exactly why no legitimate organization ever would. The government takes checks. Businesses take credit cards. Only thieves take Google Play cards for a tax bill.

One more tip while we are here. If a cashier ever asks why you are buying several gift cards, do not be annoyed. Store employees are trained to ask because they have watched neighbors get robbed this way. That question has saved people thousands of dollars.

If it already happened to you

First, you did nothing shameful. These criminals are professionals who run this play hundreds of times a day. My wife Sharon and I lost a great deal of money to a professional just like them, so I mean it when I say it can happen to anyone.

Act quickly. Keep the gift card and the store receipt. Call the company that issued the card right away, tell them it was used in a scam, and ask them to freeze the money. Sometimes they can. Then report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or call the FTC at 1-877-382-4357. Reporting helps investigators, and it helps warn the next person.

The rule fits on an index card, and I hope you will share it with someone this week. Nobody legitimate ever asks to be paid with gift cards. If they ask, hang up.

Pete