In March 2025, TikTok users received sponsored advertisements promoting a supposed “Venmo Spring Survey.” According to the ads, users could potentially earn $750 in the form of rewards or a gift card, all as part of either a seasonal survey or “trick.”
For example, one TikTok ad showed a woman dancing to a song with the caption, “Mood after Venmo BLESSES you with a band for doing their spring survey.” The link in the ad eventually led to rewardsgiantusa.com, one of several prominent websites claiming to offer big rewards simply for taking surveys.
A second TikTok ad similarly promoted a video of a different woman reacting to receiving a text message reading, “Chase | Venmo (R): Venmo sent you $740.00 and it’s ready now. Reply STOP to cancel these texts.” The caption of the ad displayed as, “POV: you tried that new venmo trick everyone’s talking abt and it actually worked.” That ad also ended up on rewardsgiantusa.com.
However, neither of the ads, including the “Venmo Spring Survey” and “new Venmo trick,” promoted legitimate methods to earn $750. Both were TikTok scams. Further, rewardsgiantusa.com and any other similar websites also existed as extensions of the scams. Any offer claiming taking surveys can lead to big gift cards or other rewards have no legitimacy on the internet.
Survey scams
For years, survey scams have plagued online users. Scammers try to entice consumers with tempting offers, like the “Venmo Spring Survey” promotion for a $750 gift card. These offers often appear on clean, professional-looking pages.
However, these scams waste time and can even cost victims money. These scams typically demand more than just survey completion. Scammers often structure their schemes to collect sensitive personal data, including phone numbers, emails and potentially more private information like birthdates or Social Security numbers. Consumers should protect this information to keep it away from scammers.
Moreover, such scams might attempt to fool people into signing up for “free trials.” These trials then automatically become paid subscriptions, leading to unexpected charges — the opposite of receiving a $750 gift card.
Affiliate marketers also profit from these schemes. Those promoting these scams earn commissions based on the number of people they direct to the surveys. Thus, victims inadvertently benefit the scammers by wasting time on surveys, signing up for trials and unknowingly sharing personal and financial data. The chance of actually receiving a promised reward or gift card remains extremely slim.
For further reading, the U.S. American Automobile Association (AAA) created content to inform consumers about survey scams. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) also published information about avoiding scams, as did Venmo on its official website.