UPDATE 6/11/17: A coupon offering free grocries at Aldi is again going viral on Facebook. Here is what we learned when we first looked into it last year:
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The newest Facebook viral post is a discount coupon for Aldi grocery stores. But is it worth downloading, or could it be a case of don’t waste your money?
The coupon claims you can get $75 in free groceries at Aldi, to celebrate the chain's 125th anniversary.
If money is tight, it seems like a godsend.
"It's great if it's true!" one shopper told us. But other shoppers we spoke with outside the Newport, KY Aldi store started getting suspicious once they looked a little closer.
"It looks fake," one man said. Good guess. Just like with a similar viral coupon for $100 in free groceries at Kroger last year, and another for $100 at Publix stores in Florida, it's fake.
Aldi will not accept it (nor will Kroger and Publix accept their versions).
What Happens When you Share it
So what's the harm in sharing it, you say? Well, plenty.
First of all, it's counterfeit, which means you are sharing a fraudulent coupon.
Secondly, it's really a scheme to get information from you and your Facebook friends.
It turns out to get the coupon ,you are required to take several surveys, where you give away your birth date among other things. Then you are required to share it with Facebook friends. The marketers behind the worthless coupon then collect all this information.
It's just the latest fake coupon to go viral on Facebook.
The Coupon Information Corporation, a trade group, says:
- Be suspicious of all coupons for free items (very few free offers are legitimate).
- Never buy coupons on eBay or Craigslist: Many are fake, or outdated and worthless.
- Be wary of any coupon being shared on Facebook Many of those are "data harvesters.".
Finally, ask yourself if the store could really afford to give away all that money
"It does not look right, " one woman in Newport told us."And I'm an Aldi shopper."
My advice? A quick Google search will tell you if it's legit, or something to delete. And that way you don't waste your money.
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