Hi @Housemum,
Thank you for your post. I can certainly understand your concerns in this situation. If you or a friend have been asked to send a buyer a gift card before your payment is released, this is likely a scam. PayPal would not require you to purchase anything in order for you to receive a payment. I would recommend reviewing the following Help Center article with more information on Spotting and Reporting Fake PayPal Emails. I hope this information helps, good luck!
Take care,
- Celeste
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