Bed, Bath and Beyond is alerting customers that a coupon circulating social media is fake, and not authorized by the company.
The coupon, which claims a value of $75, is a scam, the company said earlier this week.
"We know some of our customers are excited about this $75 offer circulating on Facebook. However, we all know some things are too good to be true," Bed, Bath and Beyond said. "We are sorry for any confusion and disappointment this fake coupon has caused. We are partnering with Facebook to have these coupons removed. Thank you for your understanding."
Bed, Bath and Beyond said it has reported the coupon to Facebook, hoping to have it removed.
The scam is similar to one circulating in April involving Lowe's Home Improvement stores. Lowe's said it believed the $50 coupons circulating the internet was a phishing scam.
The Better Business Bureau has issued five tipson how to avoid online scams:
- Don't believe what you see. It's easy to steal the colors, logos, and header of any other established organization. Scammers can also make links look like they lead to legitimate websites and emails appear to come from a different sender.
- Legitimate businesses do not ask for credit card numbers or banking information for coupons or giveaways. If they do ask for personal information, like an address or email, be sure there's a link to their privacy policy.
- When in doubt, do a quick web search. If the giveaway is a scam, this is likely to reveal an alert or bring you to the organization's real website, where they may have posted further information.
- Watch out for a reward that's too good to be true. Businesses typically give out small discounts to entice customers. If the offer seems too good to be true (a $100 voucher or 50% discount) it may be a scam.
- Look for a mismatched subject line and email body. Many of these scams have an email subject line promising one thing, but the content of the email is something completely different.
Justin Boggs is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk.Follow him on Twitter @jjboggs or on Facebook.
