Beware of disaster relief scams! Verify before you donate

BANGALORE, INDIA: Quick Heal, in a note has asked the donors to be careful of charity requests for earthquake donations on email or social media.

Over the last few days, many organizations have stepped up to raise funds in the form of donations to help the affected people. The social media is one of the most powerful tools when it comes to moving people together towards a cause. A clear example is Facebook, which has started a campaign urging users to come forward and support the Nepal victims - posts on your timeline with images and videos urging you to make a donation by clicking on a link.

“Cyber criminals consider such tragedies as an opportunity to play on people’s emotions. So it is quite possible that these criminals will come up with disaster relief scams to trick people and cheat them out of their money."

Hence, there are a few key rules to follow and keep in mind before you donate:

Some standard things to keep in mind before you decide on donating to a trust are:

• Verify the name of the organization or the website that has made this request.
• Run a Google search on it; enquire about it with your friends or if possible; someone you know from Nepal itself.
• Avoid newly created startups. It is safer to donate to well-known and well-established charitable organizations.
• If you are approached by any non-profit group that you haven’t heard of, do a bit a research.
• Do not click on any pop-up ads on certain websites you visit, that ask for your help. It is highly probable that these are fake or are designed to drop a malware on your system.

To verify charitable organizations, Quick Heal recommends, Charity Navigator, Guidestar and the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance. These websites help run a quick background check. Alternately, you can select a verified agency from the list shared by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance (an association of charities that plays an important role in accrediting charities).