Easy money for "mystery shopping"—sounded perfect

I wanted extra income without quitting my day job, so a polished email about mystery shopping sounded like a grown-up side hustle. I did not run it past my bank because the PDF "contract" looked tidy enough to feel legitimate.

They mailed a cheque for more than my first assignment and told me to buy gift cards, photograph the codes, and send them for their audit log. I deposited the cheque, bought the cards that afternoon, and emailed everything they asked for because the steps sounded official.

Mystery-shopper scams lean on fake cheques: your bank may show a temporary credit while the cheque is still clearing, but the instrument is worthless. When mine bounced, the overdraft and the gift-card spend were mine. The "company" stopped answering.

I was hopeful for quick cash and embarrassed to ask someone older if the workflow was normal. I told myself real retailers really did secret shops, so I followed the script instead of pausing at the gift-card step.

The cheque bounced a week later and the mailbox for my "coordinator" bounced too. I searched the company name plus scam and found the same cheque-and-cards pattern on warning pages—that was when I knew the job had only ever been a funnel.

I lost thousands I had meant for rent and felt stupid explaining it at the branch. Filing a report did not erase the loss, but it stopped me from blaming myself in silence.

I now know legitimate mystery shopping does not start with you depositing a stranger's cheque and buying gift cards. I wish I had hung up the moment they asked for untraceable codes.

• Never buy gift cards or wire money for a job that mailed you a cheque first—report to the FTC.

For more help, see our Report a scam page and Spot and avoid scams guide.