In the past few weeks, I’ve received multiple fake rewards scam emails like the one shown below. It claims I can win a brand new pickleball set for participating in a loyalty program. I’ve also received similar messages from senders claiming to be Ace Hardware and other companies.
Your first clue is that you aren’t likely to be invited to join a rewards program for a company you haven’t done a lot of buying from. Rewards programs are more likely to pop up at the time of purchase. Another great clue for this one was the sender. Email addresses and web addresses for rewards programs tend to be pretty straightforward. Everything about this email screams fake. Nobody is giving you a nice pickleball set just for signing up for a rewards program.
I right-clicked on the Get Started button to find the link it actually takes you to. I copied and pasted it into NotePad to check it out.
This convoluted mess is not a corporate rewards program address.
The actual web address for the Dick’s loyalty program is pretty simple.
If you get an email about a loyalty program that you haven’t enrolled in but think you might want to join, don’t click. Instead go to the website for the company and look for their actual loyalty program.
These scam sites serve two purposes. Some download malicious software onto your device and others hope to trick you into giving up your bank information in order for them to offer you rewards. Don’t fall for it.