It is commonly thought that gift cards must be activated to have any monetary value. Often displayed on countertops and lining grocery store aisles, seemingly worthless unactivated gift cards are free for anyone to grab a handful. However, weaker security features than the average credit card makes these gift cards nearly as valuable as cash. Mass produced, their numbers follow a predictable pattern and have limited built-in security, such as a chip or pin, to prevent fraud.
Information Security researcher and pen-tester. Former Marine and supporter of the EFF.