Costco has warned its customers about a scam coupon that has been circulating on social media promising shoppers $75 in celebration of the companys anniversary.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the company said members should not trust the “recurring hoax” and confirmed it is not giving away $75 coupons.
“While we love our fans and our members, this offer is a SCAM, and in no way affiliated with Costco. Thanks to our fans for letting us know about this recurring hoax!” it said.
The scam post initially appeared on Facebook earlier this year, promoting users to click on a link that is unaffiliated with Costco, in order to collect their coupon. The fraudulent offer quickly spread across social media as it asks users to share the post and also input personal information.
This is not the first time Costco has been forced to address scam coupons, as the same thing happened exactly one year ago when an identical post began circulating online.
Again users were asked to complete a brief survey about their experience at Costco and then taken to a fake site which declared them a “winner” of the coupon.
They were then asked to like and share the post on Facebook and enter “Thanks Costco” as a comment on the post, thus unknowingly recruiting new victims to the scam.
It is not known exactly what happens to the information customers provide, however they are most likely shared with various marketing companies, Hoax Slayer reported.
Victims of the scam are typically inundated with phone calls, emails text messages, and letters promoting a range of products and services, according to the outlet.
In 2017, another fake Costco coupon also did the rounds on Facebook, this time offering $41 off any purchase of $50 or more in celebration of the companys 41st anniversary.
Again, customers were asked to complete a survey and taken to a third-party website where they were prompted to provide their personal information and then share the post with their network.
