Gift cards are instant, anonymous and irreversible, which is why this category attracts more fakes than any other. The direction rule settles most of it: receiving may be real, sending never is.
A contest is judged on skill; a sweepstakes is random. That distinction decides your realistic odds, and the prize-chance-payment framework catches most prize scams in seconds.
A real sweepstakes must offer a free way to enter — it is the law, not politeness. Here is how to spot legitimate giveaways, the honest odds, and the tax side nobody mentions.