In a now-viral TikTok, a Target customer detailed how a couple at the self-checkout kiosk next to her attempted to “scam” her into buying them a gift card.
TikTok user Heather (@heatherrichelle7) posted the video on Feb. 28. In it, she said she noticed that her total was more than she expected for the two items she was attempting to purchase at the self-checkout. Upon closer inspection, Heather said she saw a charge for a Target gift card that was around $39.
After she asked the Target worker to remove the charge from her total, Heather said she got “weird vibes from a couple that was also in self-checkout.”
“She’s got a Target gift card in her hands, and she’s like, ‘It’s not working.’ And he’s like, ‘Oh, I’ll just run out to the car,’” Heather said in the clip. “She immediately leaves all of her stuff and goes out behind him. So I’m like, those fuckers just tried to scam someone into buying their shit.”
Heather said she told the Target worker what she observed and warned viewers to “pay attention” at self-checkout.
@heatherrichelle7 Target self check out SCAM #target #selfcheckout #scam #scammers #fyp ♬ original sound – HeatherRichelle
As of March 1, the video has reached over 360,000 views. In the comments section, viewers suggested methods the couple may have used to try to pull off the scam.
“They had your scanner gun and used it hoping you didn’t notice,” one user proposed.
“I literally just saw a video on this with a kid scanned a Jurassic park toy and just stood there while the girl was confused,” a second wrote.
“Interesting! So you think they scanned the gift card on yours hoping you’d pay for it without noticing and then they could use it right away?” another asked.
Other viewers shared similar experiences.
“I went thru a regular cashier check out and had a $40 pair of jeans on my receipt that I didn’t get. Can’t trust anything or anyone! Always be aware,” one commenter shared.
“It happen to me in Walmart, I saw something for like $70 and nothing that I had scanned was over $20 so I guess someone try for me to pay for them,” another wrote.
The Daily Dot reached out to Heather and Target via email.