Is this the same as the Amazon gift card messages?

It follows the same pattern as "Fake Amazon Email or Text Asking for Gift Cards: Check and Report It": an account problem, then a request for gift cards. Here it starts with a phone call naming Apple and Google, and it moves on to cash sent by mail.

The caller ID showed the company's name. Doesn't that mean it was real?

No. Cheshire police say the name or number on caller ID can be spoofed. Hang up and reach the company through a phone number or website you look up yourself.

Scam alert

Caller Says Gift Cards Will Fix Your Apple or Google Account? Hang Up

Posted Oct 19

Cheshire, CT · patch.com · Arrives by a phone call

The short answer

A caller who says your Apple or Google account has a problem and that buying gift cards will fix it is a scammer, and so is anyone who then tells you to mail cash. In October 2026, police in Cheshire, Connecticut, said a resident was told to buy a large amount of gift cards and hand over the card numbers, then told the next day to mail a large amount of cash hidden inside a magazine to an address across the country. Hang up, and contact the company yourself through a website or phone number you look up.

What is happening

On October 15, 2026, Cheshire Patch and Newport Dispatch reported a Cheshire Police Department warning: callers told a resident there was a problem with the resident's Apple and Google accounts that they could fix only if the resident bought a large amount of gift cards and provided the card numbers. The next day another call told the resident to send a large amount of cash hidden inside a magazine to an address across the country, and the scammers later called to say the money had not arrived and demanded more; Newport Dispatch reported that the resident lost money. The FBI described the same cash-in-a-magazine step in a 2023 warning about tech support scams.

How to recognize it

The caller says an account problem can be fixed only with gift cards and asks for the card numbers.
You are told to mail cash, sometimes hidden inside a magazine, to an address you do not know.
After you pay, the caller says the money never arrived and asks for more.
You are told to keep it secret, to stay on the phone while you buy the cards, or to act right away.

What to do instead

Hang up and contact the company yourself through a phone number or website you look up.
Never buy gift cards because an unknown caller told you to, and never read gift card numbers or PINs over the phone.
Never mail or ship cash to someone you do not personally know.
If you want to tell someone, the rule is: a caller who wants gift cards or mailed cash gets hung up on.

If it already happened

Responding to one of these is common and understandable. These steps are what people usually take next.

Paying after a convincing call is common and understandable. Cheshire police say these callers can be extremely convincing and push you to act before you have time to question what is happening.
Call the gift card company on the number on the back of the card and ask whether the balance can be frozen. If you shipped cash, contact the carrier with your receipt or tracking number.
Report it to local police and to the FBI at ic3.gov, including the address the cash was sent to, and at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Expect more calls. In Cheshire, the scammers called back and asked for more.

Open Help Now

Common questions

Is this the same as the Amazon gift card messages?: It follows the same pattern as "Fake Amazon Email or Text Asking for Gift Cards: Check and Report It": an account problem, then a request for gift cards. Here it starts with a phone call naming Apple and Google, and it moves on to cash sent by mail.
The caller ID showed the company's name. Doesn't that mean it was real?: No. Cheshire police say the name or number on caller ID can be spoofed. Hang up and reach the company through a phone number or website you look up yourself.

Practice this safely

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Tell someone

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Caller Says Gift Cards Will Fix Your Apple or Google Account? Hang Up

A caller who says your Apple or Google account has a problem and that buying gift cards will fix it is a scammer, and so is anyone who then tells you to mail cash. In October 2026, police in Cheshire, Connecticut, said a resident was told to buy a large amount of gift cards and hand over the card numbers, then told the next day to mail a large amount of cash hidden inside a magazine to an address across the country. Hang up, and contact the company yourself through a website or phone number you look up.

Read the full alert: https://endscamsproject.com/latest-scams/tech-support-gift-card-cash-mail-scam

Where this comes from

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More recent alerts

This alert provides general educational information drawn from the sources above. It cannot determine whether a specific message you received is genuine, investigate an incident, or promise recovery or reimbursement.

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