The Boss Needs Gift Cards!

How it works

An urgent email appears to come from your manager requesting gift cards for clients or employees. They say they're too busy to talk.

The sender name is your manager's, but the address is a free webmail account. The scammer targets newer staff and sends it late in the day when the manager is likely unreachable.

Red flags

• "I'm in a meeting, can't talk, just text me"
• A request to scratch off the cards and email photos of the codes
• A display name that matches but an address that doesn't

If it already happened

If you already clicked and signed in: change that password now, from the real site, and turn on multi-factor authentication. If you sent money, call your bank immediately; wire and ACH recalls work best in the first hours. Tell your IT provider so they can check for forwarding rules and other sign-ins on the account.

Where OpenEFA fits

OpenEFA MailGuard blocks most of these before they reach an inbox. The ones that get through are usually the most carefully targeted, which is why your people still need to know the pattern.

Part of the OpenEFA MailGuard Scam Watch series. Published October 21, 2026 by the EFA Security team. Share it freely; a link back is appreciated.