Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) fans know that Apple brand products come with a premium price, and a chance for discount is pretty much non-existent. That didn’t stop scammers from trying to trick Australian consumers into signing up for a fake discount card that claimed to offer 100 AU$ (that’s $103 in US dollars) for only 9 AU$.
The following discount scam was emailed to consumers, and contained the following message: “Apple is rewarding its long-term customers. Your loyalty for our products made you eligible for buying an Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Discount Card. With this 9 AU$ Discount Card you will have 100 AU$ credit at any Australian Apple Store.”
Naturally, the email was also enclosed with a sign-up form that asked for personal details, like name, address, birth-date, and credit card information.
This scam is not affiliated with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), or their regular discount card.
The email that was sent to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) consumers in Australia was full of tip offs. First off, the discount offer was too large for the paltry amount of money needed to obtain the so-called “discount card”. More importantly, the discount required you to share credit card information. It’s also important to point out that a real discount card application won’t ask for personal bank account or credit card information. More importantly, you should never sign up for a discount card online, unless you’re on the official store website, but even then you should proceed with caution. Most of the time, brick-and-mortar stores will offer discount cards, or ask for your email address, but they never ask for your financial information or date-of-birth, unless you’re signing up for a store credit card. Even then, you have to sign your name at the end of the application to give them permission to look at your credit record, in order to see if you are credit-worthy. Never apply for a discount card or anything that sounds to good to be true over an email.
