The 7 Father's Day gift scams that cost Americans millions every year

The 7 Father's Day gift scams that cost Americans millions every year

Father's Day can be both a sentimental day for celebrants and a lucrative season for businesses. A 2025 NRF-Prosper Insights survey of 8,225 consumers found that U.S. consumers were expected to spend a record $24 billion on Father's Day gifts that year, up from $22.4 billion in 2024. The average planned spending was about $200 per person.

Meanwhile, fraud is becoming more expensive and more convincing. Consumers lost more than $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, a 25% increase from 2023, and more than a third (38%) of people who reported fraud said they lost money. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of U.S. adults surveyed by Pew in 2025 said they have experienced some type of online scam or attack, while about a third (36%) said they'd bought an item online that never arrived or turned out to be counterfeit and wasn't refunded.

Increased spending, combined with scammers with progressively sophisticated tools to trick shoppers, makes for a perfect storm for fraud this Father's Day season. Consumers still need to watch out for such red flags as typosquatting sites (fraudulent websites that imitate legitimate sites but with slightly altered URLs) and online stores with questionably low prices. But today's scams are more complicated: They might use professional product photos, AI-generated reviews, polished storefronts, and social media ads that look authentic to sell cheaply-made products. Or they might compromise gift cards.

For those reasons, SmartCustomer covered seven Father's Day scams to watch out for before you make any purchases.

The best defense is a simple five-minute verification habit.

1. The Counterfeit, Hazardous Gadget

Counterfeit goods remain a major global trade problem. Counterfeit and pirated goods accounted for up to 2.3% of global trade in 2021, and consumer electronics were among the types of intellectual property rights seizures in fiscal year 2024.

The classic electronics scam is simple: a product looks like a name-brand device but falls short in performance. When it arrives, the buyer likely feels duped and frustrated. But the bigger problem is that counterfeit electronics can create real safety risks. Low-quality and counterfeit chargers may lack protections against overcurrent, overcharging, overheating, and overdischarge, all of which can create safety hazards.

The tells: The price might be dramatically below normal retail, the seller might be unfamiliar, the product might be new but not sold by an authorized dealer, support information isn't included, or the listing might not show critical product information, such as serial numbers or warranty details.

Shop smarter: Buy electronics directly from the source or a known retailer/authorized seller. Be wary of products (for example, chargers or power banks) touted as identical to brand-name products but sold at half the price. And if you're going to knowingly buy a dupe, make sure you know the risks.

2. The Vanishing Online Store

A fake online store can be very convincing. The homepage might have a clean design with authentic-looking product photography, a customer service chat, Father's Day countdown banners, and a checkout page that accepts credit cards. But when a cheap knockoff, or worse yet, nothing arrives, the site vanishes after collecting payment information.

Scammers often create fake websites that look similar to those of popular retailers, tricking consumers into entering payment information for products they never receive. A 2024 report ranked online purchase scams as the fourth riskiest scam type; online purchase scams represented nearly a third (30%) of reports, and an overwhelming majority (87.5%) of those reports involved a financial loss.

The urgency around Father's Day compounds the problem. Shoppers often wait until the last minute to buy a gift and are tricked into what appear to be exceptional deals. Scammers know that this urgency makes people lower their guard and act hastily.

Look out for the following tells: The store doesn't list a physical address or working phone number and has a domain that appears newly created. It has vague return policies and sells high-demand brand products at suspiciously low prices.

Shop smarter: Check whether the business name appears beyond its own website. Research reviews of and complaints about the company. Search for scams associated with the company name. Use a credit card rather than a debit or peer-to-peer payment; credit cards provide dispute rights when an item never arrives or a charge is incorrect.

3. The Social Media Ad

Social media has become one of the biggest fraud channels. In 2025, consumers reported losing more than $2.1 billion to scams that originated on social media, with Facebook associated with more reported losses than any other social platform. With this type of scam, a sponsored ad appears on a social media platform (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, TikTok). It might appear among updates from friends or between posts from local businesses and brands that consumers follow. It advertises a product using a logo that looks like a brand-name logo, often with a particularly great deal that is time-sensitive (e.g., "Father's Day Flash Sale: 70% Off Smartwatches!"). When you click on the link, the landing page looks like a major retailer, and the product photos look authentic. But after you submit payment, the store sends cheap knock-offs or nothing at all.

Look out for the following tells: The ad sends you to a look-alike domain, not the official retailer. The price is wildly below market. The comments are full of generic and similarly worded praise. The profile running the ad has little history and few real followers, or a name that doesn't quite match the brand.

Shop smarter: Never complete a purchase through a social ad without independently verifying the seller. To do so, open a new browser tab, then search for the official retailer's website. Check there to see if the seller is an authorized partner. Also, check the product on the official site to make sure the prices match up reasonably. Lastly, look for reviews of the seller's exact web address to make sure you learn from relevant experiences.

4. The Compromised Gift Card

Gift cards are one of the easiest Father's Day gifts and one of the easiest products for scammers to exploit. There are three common versions of this type of scam.

First, criminals might physically tamper with gift cards on store racks, copy the card number and PIN, reseal the packaging, and wait. Once a shopper buys and loads the card, the scammer drains the balance.

Second, a fraudster might impersonate a government agency, tech company, utility, bank, or family member and pressure the victim to buy gift cards and read the numbers to the scammer over the phone. Third, criminals might gain access to online gift card accounts through hacking or phishing, then sell or use the stolen card information online.

Gift card fraud is prevalent and costly. The Federal Trade Commission received more than 41,000 gift card fraud reports in 2024, representing $212 million in losses; through the first three quarters of 2025, there were already more than 30,000 reports and $199 million in losses.

The FTC advises consumers to inspect physical gift cards before buying to avoid buying cards with visible PINs or damaged protective stickers. Remember that legitimate government agencies or businesses won't demand payment by gift card.

Look out for the following tells: Scratched PIN covers, loose packaging, stickers placed over barcodes, or cards hanging in easily accessible racks that enable tampering.

Shop smarter: Buy digital gift cards directly from the retailer's website or purchase physical cards from behind the counter when possible. Keep the receipt. Refuse if anyone asks to be paid with a gift card number.

5. The Tech Support Scam

Some scams actively prey upon the gift recipient. For example, your father opens his new tablet, laptop, smartwatch, or smart speaker. Soon afterward, he gets a message or phone call from someone claiming to be from a familiar, reputable company. The person insists the device needs activation, warranty registration, a security update, or premium support. The goal is to get remote access, a credit card number, a login, or enough personal information to steal an account.

Older adults are especially vulnerable to this type of scam. In 2024, consumers aged 60 and older were five times more likely than younger consumers to report losing money to tech support scams, with older consumers reporting $159 million in losses to tech support scams. This type of scam is particularly malicious because it happens at a vulnerable moment: setup. When a new device already feels complicated, a warning message claiming the device is insecure or unregistered can sound plausible.

Look out for the following tells: A company contacts you first and says there is an urgent problem with a device you just received. The message asks you to call a number on a pop-up message, grant remote access, pay a support fee, or verify an account using sensitive information.

Shop smarter: Real tech companies don't make cold calls to activate a device. If a warning appears, don't call the number listed in the pop-up message or email. Go directly to the manufacturer's official support page or call the number printed on legitimate product documentation.

6. The 5-Star Review Mirage

Fake reviews enable scams. A knock-off gadget with thousands of glowing reviews might make it seem legitimate. A counterfeit seller uses review farms, paid reviews, AI-generated testimonials, or refund-for-review schemes to make inferior knockoffs look like high-quality products.

The FTC's 2024 ruling on consumer reviews and testimonials prohibits the sale or purchase of fake reviews and testimonials and targets deceptive review practices, including reviews attributed to people who do not exist or people who didn't actually use the product. But enforcement doesn't mean fake reviews disappear overnight. Scammers only need to fool buyers long enough to move inventory and change seller names before repeating the cycle.

Look out for the following tells: Many reviews are posted within a short time window. The wording sounds repetitive. The photos look staged. The product has thousands of five-star ratings but almost no credible presence outside one marketplace.

Shop smarter: Read the one-, two-, and three-star reviews first. Look for specific complaints: overheating, dead battery, warranty denial, counterfeit packaging, a missing serial number, or a disappearing seller. Make sure to check independent review sources. Don't rely solely upon the seller's own rating wall.

7. The QR Code: A New Twist on the ‘Brushing Scam'

This scam involves a new twist on the "brushing scam," in which scammers send unsolicited packages to boost fake online reviews. Fraudsters include a QR code on or inside the package. Notes that appear legitimate might urge consumers to scan this QR code to activate the device or register a warranty. The problem is that a QR code can send consumers to a phishing site built to steal personal data or payment information.

The FBI has warned consumers about QR code scams, including malicious QR codes in physical materials and unsolicited packages. In a 2025 public service announcement, the FBI warned that criminals were sending packages containing QR codes that prompted recipients to provide personal or financial information or download malicious software. The FTC has also warned that unexpected package QR codes can lead to phishing websites or malware.

Look out for the following tells: You receive an unsolicited package with a QR code. The QR code leads to a domain that doesn't match the manufacturer, asks for a credit card to claim a free item, requests your Social Security number, or asks you to download an unfamiliar app.

Shop smarter: Don't scan QR codes found in product packaging. If you want to register a warranty, go to the manufacturer's official website manually. Halt the registration process if you're asked for sensitive information unrelated to the product.

What To Do Before You Buy a Father's Day Gift: A Checklist

Fraudsters benefit when shoppers are reckless and don't take precautions. The best defense is a five-minute verification habit.

Before buying, ask the following questions:

• Does the seller exist beyond this one listing? Search for the history of the business, independent reviews, complaints, and contact information.
• Is the price believable? A modest sale might not signal a scam; however, significant discounts should be verified.
• Am I on the official website? Don't trust or click on links from social media ads or emails. Enter the URL of the site manually.
• Does the payment method protect me?Credit cards provide dispute rights when products never arrive or charges are wrong; gift cards, wire transfers, crypto, and peer-to-peer payments are much harder to recover.
• Will the gift recipient be protected from fraud? Warn recipients: no cold-call tech support, no pop-up phone numbers, no gift card payments, and no QR codes unless the destination is verified.

Safeguard Your Holiday

Father's Day is a time for celebration. In a marketplace filled with third-party sellers, social media ads, AI-generated reviews, look-alike storefronts, gift card scammers, and counterfeit, hazardous electronics, a little skepticism can help ensure the day goes well and neither the buyer nor the gift recipient experiences fraud.

This story was produced by SmartCustomer and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

Copyright 2026 Stacker Media, LLC

This story was originally published June 3, 2026 at 4:30 AM.