Fact Check: Is Publix $250 coupon scam or real?

The ever-increasing scams and hoaxes that are making rounds on social media are preying on many innocent people and customers. They use such scams in order to loot the people under the name of a well-established name. One such confusing rumour that people are talking about on their social media is that the food and pharmacy chain Publix is giving away coupons of $250. 

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Claim:

A social media rumour claims that the food and pharmacy store Publix is giving away free coupons for $250 to all social media users. People have been searching for the site and trying to get the coupons from there free of charge. People took to Facebook and Twitter asking, "Is the Publix Coupon real?"

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The link given in these posts takes one to a page that takes a survey. In that survey, questions like whether you have visited the store and if you would recommend it to others are asked with the options Yes and No. In the end, it urges the people to go and share the same link with others and claim the coupon.

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Rating: Fake

The coupon is completely fake and does not give any kind of coupons. Such scams have always been made and shared by scammers on the internet. Publix's official Twitter account also responded to its customers and reassured them that the coupons were indeed fake.

The Publix $250 coupon is a scam and is fake

Origin:

The Publix coupon scam started spreading on Facebook as the site asks people to share and inform their friends and family on the social media site. Using fake information, we followed the instructions given by the page. Once you click on Claim Coupon, a page pops up and asks you to allow notifications from go.domainxchange.xyz. Later, a page opens about a game called Spartan Poker and asks you to register. This is proof that it is a fake site. 

Not only Publix, but also the department store Kohl's is also being targetted by such scams. The two survey pages of Kohl's and Publix are very similar. In fact, the comments given in the two sites are the same. This shows that the site itself is fake.

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Google Trends Analysis

People have been searching the internet to get free coupons from Publix. These search took a sharp hike on April 16. Here is also the number of enquiries people did on the internet. 

(Source: Google Trends)

Disclaimer: It is very important to stay aware and also stay away from such hoaxes and scams. Providing personal information to these sites can prove to be very dangerous. Make sure that the sources of such kinds of news are official and dependable. 

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