Ansett
21 November 2005, 06:07
Charity Scams
Of all the scams on the Internet, charity scams must be the most reprehensible. They are, as the name suggests, bogus solicitations for money to be sent to the scammer for charitable causes. These are particularly nasty scams because not only do they take advantage of the willingness of decent people to help those in need, they also divert money from real charities thus from the people who need it most.
Charity scams can take many forms. They often pretend to be from religious people who are trying to get money to help build an orphanage or a church or a refuge for children suffering from HIV. Sometimes the scammer pretends to be a representative of a bona-fide charity such as the Red Cross and may refer you to a genuine web site to back up their claims, other scammers just concoct false charities in the hope that people won't check up on them.
Although charity scams are a constant feature of the many e-mails scammers send out, at times of international crisis the scammers jump on the bandwagon to take advantage of the many people who wish to help. This was particularly evident at the time of the Tsunami in Asia and Hurricane Katrina in the USA.
If you receive such an e-mail, bear in mind that real charities never solicit money by mass mailing people who have not had any previous contact with them. Nor do real charities ask for money to be donated by Western Union, they usually have a web site where donations can be securely accepted. If a charity requests money for aid in a humanitarian crisis, they always set up a system where donations can be accepted through bank transfers, so if you wish to donate, do it at your bank.
This article Copyright: Fraudwatchers.org 2005
Written by Batman
Of all the scams on the Internet, charity scams must be the most reprehensible. They are, as the name suggests, bogus solicitations for money to be sent to the scammer for charitable causes. These are particularly nasty scams because not only do they take advantage of the willingness of decent people to help those in need, they also divert money from real charities thus from the people who need it most.
Charity scams can take many forms. They often pretend to be from religious people who are trying to get money to help build an orphanage or a church or a refuge for children suffering from HIV. Sometimes the scammer pretends to be a representative of a bona-fide charity such as the Red Cross and may refer you to a genuine web site to back up their claims, other scammers just concoct false charities in the hope that people won't check up on them.
Although charity scams are a constant feature of the many e-mails scammers send out, at times of international crisis the scammers jump on the bandwagon to take advantage of the many people who wish to help. This was particularly evident at the time of the Tsunami in Asia and Hurricane Katrina in the USA.
If you receive such an e-mail, bear in mind that real charities never solicit money by mass mailing people who have not had any previous contact with them. Nor do real charities ask for money to be donated by Western Union, they usually have a web site where donations can be securely accepted. If a charity requests money for aid in a humanitarian crisis, they always set up a system where donations can be accepted through bank transfers, so if you wish to donate, do it at your bank.
This article Copyright: Fraudwatchers.org 2005
Written by Batman