Coming off the holiday season, attorneys general from 13 states — including Michigan — and the District of Columbia are calling on the public to be aware of gift card scams and report if they experience them.

The AGs have joined in a public service announcement campaign paid for by the Gift Card Fraud Prevention Alliance, aimed at protecting consumers from the growing threat of gift card fraud.

This collaborative effort comes as millions of Americans prepare to redeem gift cards — a prime opportunity for scammers to target unsuspecting individuals, the group warns in a news release.

The PSAs will run through Jan. 31, and feature a unified message from state AGs that gift cards are safe while urging consumers to remain vigilant against gift card scams.

The campaign highlights common fraud tactics, offers tips for safe gift card usage and encourages the public to immediately report any incidents of gift card fraud to their respective state attorney general offices.

Gift card scams often involve fraudsters impersonating trusted organizations or individuals and pressuring victims to purchase gift cards and share the codes, the AGs advise. These schemes can result in significant financial loss and emotional distress for consumers.

“Gift cards are a popular holiday present, but they are also a target for organized criminal networks that steal, tamper with and drain their value,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said. “My office is proud to partner with the Gift Card Fraud Prevention Alliance, retailers, gift card networks and attorneys general from across the country to share information and best practices, protect consumers and dismantle the criminal operations behind these schemes.”

Added Bill Hallan, president of the Michigan Retailers Association, “Gift card scams are attractive to organize retail crime networks because they are easily accessible and hard to trace. Retailers are constantly innovating to prevent gift card fraud and working with law enforcement on gift card cases.”

And Lisa LaBruno, executive director of the RILA Communities Foundation, which leads the Gift Card Fraud Prevention Alliance, said, “It takes a village to combat gift card fraud, and it’s critical to get the word out so consumers know about these scams and how to avoid them.”

To recognize and avoid gift card scams, consumers should remember: government agencies and reputable companies will never demand payment via gift cards; requests for immediate action or secrecy are red flags.

If you or someone you know has been targeted by a gift card scam, report the incident to the Department of Attorney General immediately. Every report helps track criminal activity and build stronger cases against criminal networks operating gift card scams, the AGs stated.

In addition to Michigan, participating AGs include Arkansas, Kentucky, Delaware, District of Columbia, Nevada, Georgia, Oregon, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Iowa, South Dakota, Kansas and Washington.

The PSA by Nessel is at youtube.com/watch?v=BLF2NIOmHtE. The National PSA is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9eCHxULVn0.

For more information about the PSA campaign and resources on preventing gift card fraud, go to the Gift Card Fraud Prevention Alliance website at https://protectmygiftcard.com/.