Scam Watch

Every time a terrible tragedy strikes, legitimate non-profit organizations will put out a message to supporters asking for financing and other assistance in helping victims. For every real donation that you are able to make which will actually help people, there are countless fake charities which emerge around any number of events. While Internet philanthropy donations are a reasonable way for charities to raise funds, you should also be aware of charity scams.

Make sure that you primarily donate to organizations that you know well – non-profits will established, off line operations and a stellar long, term reputation for delivering quality services to those in need. In addition to specific, cause-oriented charities, you can also donate to umbrella organizations which filter the funds to only legitimate groups who will put your donation to the best use. You can identify these organizations through background research, and can use their on line form to provide a donation.

One set of Internet charity scam are criminals who pose as members of true charity organizations. By seeking to collect donations for these groups, whether through mass phishing emails or pleas for help, these scammers will try to emulate the appearance and behavior of real charities. Instead of clicking on links from emails you get from charities, always use a web search to identify the group’s actual website URL along with their online donation form. With phishing emails, the scam site will attempt to copy the same look and feel as the real site, but actually filter your financial information into a completely different account – this process can turn an act of good to a door open to identity theft.

You should be particularly wary of charities that you have never heard of – if a charity is new, suggest that they join an umbrella group that will be able to professionally evaluate their operations and credentials. Never give you money to a group you aren’t familiar with, no matter how noble the cause may seem – you can always find a real organization that will help address these concerns on the ground.

Charity scams take advantage of human emotional response around natural tragedies, famine, war and other travesties. If your natural response is to help, go with an organization you are confident will actually deliver upon their promises. Make sure to contact the group before you donate to check exactly how your donation will be utilized, and ask for any 3rd party verification of their operations. It’s a good ideal to keep your donations to local, well established groups that you know outside of the Internet so you can personally vouch for their good deeds in the community. This way, you can provide a donation along with lending a hand in actually helping deliver the services you are funding. By harnessing the energy and emotion surrounding disasters to help fix the solution directly, you avoid the potential to be taken by an opportune online charity scam, which all becoming all too common.