Be wary of donation scams

You receive a heartbreaking message asking for support for a family you understand is affected by a house fire or life-threatening illness, with a link to a crowdfunding page.

There was a natural disaster in a community where you used to live. You see posts on local Facebook or Reddit groups asking for donations to support displaced residents.

The tragedy could also be real, but are you sure your contribution will profit the victims, survivors or relief organizations? Cybercriminals have gotten increasingly adept at exploiting real-life tragedies to separate you out of your money, using their details about you to conjure up immediately compelling arguments.

“What all of these scams have in common is that they prey on the victim’s humanity and desire to help,” said Julie Kuzmic, director of consumer protection and compliance at consumer credit agency Equifax Canada. “The fraudster exploits two vulnerabilities: firstly, there is an affinity for the person in his network that he knows, and secondly, the target person’s desire to support a cause.”

Warning signs to look at out for

They feel sorry for the victims and need to assist. However, once you receive a support request, look out for signs that something could also be fallacious. Here are some signs that a fundraising request might be fraudulent:

• The details don’t completely match what you understand. The information may not entirely match what you understand in regards to the individual, family or community affected. The challenge is that scammers (and their AI tools) are improving at making messages and web sites sound factual and convincing.

• The name of the charity is barely different. It may resemble the name of a legitimate charity related to the victims or the deceased. The color scheme and logos on the web site you’re redirected to might also look almost similar.
• Additional additional donations appear. For example, you might be asked to pay for a month – or, at the next price, a yr – to light a candle in someone’s memory.
• There is a way of urgency. The sender may claim that the funds should be raised inside an imminent deadline – sometimes as early as tomorrow. “As with all scams, there is often a sense of urgency,” says Kuzmic. The goal is to stop you from reconsidering your actions or giving law enforcement time to intervene.
• They require unusual payment methods. The fundraiser may suggest options comparable to sending bitcoins or having “a person in the neighborhood” collect a money donation. “No legitimate charity will ask you to donate in Bitcoin or gold bullion,” Kuzmic notes.

Even in the event you’re fairly certain that a fundraising appeal is legitimate, it’s price doing a Google seek for the name of the charity or funeral home being represented and in search of the campaign in query on their website. If the links you were redirected to are different or don’t have any connection to the organization’s fundamental page, that is a giant red flag.

What to do in the event you discover a charity scam?

Scammers gain credibility through the use of reputable crowdfunding platforms like GoFundMe. These sites could have a process in place to confirm the legitimacy of fundraisers, however the sheer variety of campaigns makes it difficult for them to watch every one – and criminals can get away with their winnings long before the system is alerted.

For this reason, it’s mandatory for potential donors to be wary of all online requests for funds. The Canadian Anti-Scam Coalition, of which Equifax is a member, uses the slogan “Stop. Check. Talk.” So consider carefully before you rush to donate to an excellent cause. Independently review the charity’s pitch and try and confirm it. And in the event you think the pitch could also be illegitimate, speak up and share your suspicions with other members of the relevant social circle and law enforcement.

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“Even if people realize it’s a scam, they might just ignore it or block the sender,” says Kuzmic. “Often it’s the end of the road for that person, but it’s not the end of the road for the next victim. They move on.”

People who’ve been exploited may remain silent out of shame, Kuzmic adds. However, to stop fraud, it’s needed to report the fraud to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center and native police and spread the word to other individuals who could also be targeted.

Always stay one step ahead of the scammers

If you wish additional protection against fundraising scams and other types of fraud, that is something to contemplate Equifax accomplished^TM Protection. The device protection feature offered with this versatile digital subscription service is able to flagging false and fraudulent web sites that you might visit. Starting at $34.95 per thirty days, the service also offers other digital security measures including:

• Password manager
• Social media monitoring
• VPN
• Credit monitoring
• Parental controls
• Identity recovery within the event of identity theft

Read more about scams and scams:

About Michael McCullough

Michael is a financial journalist and editor based in Duncan, BC. He is the previous editor-in-chief of Canadian Business and editorial director of Canada Wide Media. He also writes for The Globe and Mail and BCBusiness.