November 25, 2009  Yuma, AZ -- Gift cards seem like the no-hassle approach to tackling everyone's wish list this holiday season, but experts say think again.  Scammers are targeting gift cards hanging on store racks.

"They start reading the numbers off those cards and start cataloging them.  And then they'll come back in a couple of days and see if those cards are gone and if they are, then they'll start calling by phone," says Sgt. Ryland Crouch with the Yuma County Sheriff's Office.

It only takes a couple of phone calls to find out how much money is there for the taking.  Then scammers log on for an online shopping spree.

"The way it works really good at Christmas time is people are buying these things and not giving them away for two or three weeks.  So the scammers have two or three weeks to spend that money."

Some companies are catching on.  American Express has taken precautions to conceal its gift cards and the numbers.

"To make their cards more secure, they've wrapped them in a piece of cardboard where they're covered and all the numbers are covered. And then when you get to the cash register, the cashier opens up the card and then does all the things that need to be done to activate the card."

Experts say avoid card walls.  Instead purchase gift cards kept behind the counter.