Charity scams: How to donate safely to any cause

Giving to a charitable cause is a wonderful act of kindness. However, some scammers misuse this kindness for their personal gain. The air of uncertainty has stirred uneasiness and tension among the people of the world. There is an increase in the number of both natural calamities and man-made disasters. During these difficult times, brave warriors come out in the support of the needy. They organize charity events online and offline to collect contributions. Many are real, while some are scams.

The number of charity scams has increased over the period of time. Many scammers use charity as a platform to scam money. From organized crimes to fraud, charity is a tool to transfer funds without any complexity. In this article, we’ll walk you through how to donate safely without fear of scammers. 

 

What Is Charity Scam?

A charity scam is a scam type where a person or group of people pretend as a Nonprofit organization or a reputed individual to collect money in the pretense of charity. Scamming can take place through phone calls, text messages, and online or even offline social events. 

Though several measures are present, and technologies are available to identify these scammers, there is often someone who escapes this identification system and creates chaos. They are particularly on the rise during natural disasters, man-made calamities, or other social problems. At that time, the donors become prey to the scammers. As its impact, they may decline to donate to a truly noble cause. 

How To Identify Scammers?

On the backdrop of recession and an unstable economy, it is difficult to arrange funds for any charitable cause. So, every penny of the donors is valuable. So, it is time we take this scamming seriously.  

So, how to identify these scammers and donate safely? Let us explain some tips that you might find useful while differentiating a true charity cause from a bogus one. 

 

Provide False Information

Scammers often contact in the pretext of a fake charity organization or imitate a legitimate one. While it is easier to identify the former, it is hard to differentiate the latter from the true NGOs. In either case, it is better to verify their contact information. Collect their contact information and evaluate the legitimacy of that information.

Tip: The website of charity organizations ends with .org and not .com. 

Share Fewer Details On Charity

The false charity claimers present minimum information regarding the donation. They won’t dwell on how they collect funds or use them for the actual cause. Rather, they try to connect with you through emotions. They provide a fake sob story and focus more on ensuring you believe them. In such cases, ask more questions related to the donation. If the answers given are not satisfying, take it as a red flag.

Requesting Personal Information

Most legit fundraisers offer a secure platform for donors to make payments and other transactions. So, seldom share your bank account details or essential identification numbers when someone requests funds, donations, or contributions of any kind. Don’t be convinced by their confident talks, and never agree to make payments through a phone call or text message. 

Make Claims Of Funds Never Given

There are instances where scammers send an email, text message, or phone call showing gratitude for a contribution for which the recipient never donated. It is certainly the work of a scam, and you should ignore such messages. We recommend reporting them to the concerned authorities if you receive such messages frequently. Be cautious before clicking any links you receive through these messages as they may lead to a scam website. 

Force You To Contribute

Hard selling is a bad practice in fundraising. Forcing the donors to make payments will decrease the chances of any contribution. Sometimes, it becomes too consuming, and they may change their mind about the donation. So, a legit fundraiser or charity never forces donors to make payments. They respect every act of kindness. But, the scammers will force you or rush you to make donations. 

Ask Payments Through Odd Methods

Top Security organizations and banks encourage donors to keep track of all their transactions for charity or fundraising. As a first, donors must start making payments through digital payments and checks. Discouraging making payments through cash, wiring money, or gift cards reduces the chances of getting scammed. When you record your transactions, it is easier to track the recipient of any scam.

 

How To Donate Safely To Any Cause?

Staying away from scammers is not a simple task. The development of technology has paved way for more scamming. Donors must maintain high vigilance and steer clear of scamming of any kind. But, that shouldn’t stop you from supporting a noble cause.

Here, we have listed some tips and tricks to donate safely to a good cause. 

• Before making donations to any cause, do some research on the nonprofit organization or fundraiser. Verify the authenticity of the cause and check their presence through legitimate charity databases. It will ensure you are donating to the right nonprofit organization.
• Be careful before donating to a charity cause that is not registered as a nonprofit organization. If you are donating for crowdfunding or some other cause, check the source and ask questions about the distribution of funds. Know the fundraiser before making any contributions. 
• Before donating through custom fundraising software, make donations only for verified campaigns. If the fundraising software is legitimate like GivingX, you can safely give away your contributions. 
• Some scammers create online donation pages and start collecting funds. Be careful of these scammers. Before making online donations, check if the website is recognized and secure. 
• Prior to making donations to any noble cause, confirm if the nonprofit organization is a tax exempted organization. You can check it through The Tax Exempt Organization Search of the IRS. 

 

What To Do If Have Been Scammed?

If you are an individual or an organization scammed for a charity cause, you can take the below measures to find a solution. 

• If you are a victim of a scam, report the fraud through https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/
• To prevent other helpful donors from being scammed, report the scam to the concerned charity officials of your state.
• If you were scammed through a fundraising website, let the security team of the website take immediate measures to prevent further scams.

 

Wrapping Up

The number of scams is rising exponentially. Scammers take advantage of people’s goodwill to earn money. So, donors have to be cautious before making any donations.

If you are a legal fundraiser, it is your responsibility to offer a secure platform where the donors can donate safely. GivingX is a secure fundraising software through which you can create an online donation page or start your crowdfunding without compromising the donor’s information. The efforts of the donors are commendable. 

As a nonprofit organization, you can take measures to give them a brilliant user experience. The GivingX platform is affordable. Our pricing plans are designed to meet fundraisers of all sizes.