Is Walmart giving away $500 gift cards

A recent Facebook post promises what seems like a pretty good deal: a $500 gift card for groceries that you can purchase for a mere $2. 

"Walmart management is helping with rising prices with $500 grocery cards for $2," the Sept. 5 post says. "Follow the instructions to participate." 

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

Walmart did not immediately respond to our questions about the post. 

But there are a few clues on Facebook that this isn’t a credible offer that you should pursue. 

First, the link "to participate" was shared by a page called "Grocery Card Shipment." This page isn’t affiliated with Walmart, and it’s brand-new. In fact, it was created the same day the post was published.

Second, although several Facebook accounts had commented on the post, claiming to have received gift cards, their profiles were bare-bones. They had profile pictures that were all updated on the same date. A reverse image search for several of the profile pictures led us to Russian-language websites and social media profiles with names that are different from the names used on Facebook. 

Clicking on the link in the post raised more red flags. 

The website it takes you to shows Walmart’s logo. But the url began "echolala.info/blog" and isn’t affiliated with Walmart. It told users to answer questions about their gender, age, family members and history of winning gift cards before leading to another page that said: "You have been chosen to participate in this survey. It will only take a minute of your time and you can receive a fantastic prize: $500 Walmart Gift Card!"

A grid of 12 boxes then appears, and users are directed to click on them. The first box we clicked was "empty" and we were instructed to try again. The second box revealed a supposed $500 Walmart gift card. We win! Then the catch: You have to enter your credit card information to pay $2 to ship the gift card to your home. 

We didn’t find anything on Walmart’s website to corroborate the claim in the Facebook post that the company is virtually giving away $500 in grocery gift cards. In fact, among the tips on Walmart’s website to avoid gift card fraud is one cautioning customers against buying, selling or checking a gift card balance "on online marketplaces outside of Walmart.com."

We rate this post False. 

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It’s basically just a variation of the old “Free Gift Card” scam that pretty much stays viral on Facebook.

In a nutshell, the scam says Walmart is giving away free $250 gift cards to anyone who wants one. 

All you have to do is click a link to visit their website and enter your name, your mailing address and your phone number into a handy-dandy form. After they receive the requested info they’ll mail your free gift card right out to you!

Sounds pretty great, right?

The problem is, Walmart isn’t really giving away free gift cards. And neither is anyone else unless the giveaway is part of a promotion being offered via the company’s official website or verified Facebook page (look for the blue checkmark).

If you think about it, it’s easy to see why these types of offers have to be scams…

Facebook has over 2 billion users, and even if just 10% of them were to receive a free $250 gift card…well, you can do the math.

Bottom line: The only people who end up getting anything for free in these “giveaways” are the scammers who post them.

If you take the bait and enter the information requested on the scammer’s fake “Walmart” website you’ll quickly end up on numerous scammer and spammer lists.

Always remember that you’re not going to a get a free gift card, a free iPad, or a free anything else of real value just for handing over your contact information.

When you see this type of scam posts, simply ignore them and report them to Facebook.