5 Ways to Protect Yourself From Charity Fraud

Our television screens have been emitting an orange glow for the last few weeks now, cycling through one image after another of the wildfires raging in Southern California. Thankfully, alongside the massive devastation has been an outpouring of compassion and support from those who have it in their hearts to help. It’s only human to want to help when you see others struggling.
Unfortunately, that outpouring of support draws attention from criminals who want to exploit it. So how do you maintain your heart to serve while also protecting yourself from people committing charity fraud? You don’t need to count crowdfunding sites out, but there are a couple of steps you can take to make sure your money is going where you intend it to. Here are our 5 tips for protecting yourself when you donate to charitable causes.
1. Keep it in your network
Consider the degrees of separation between you and the recipient of your donation. The more degrees of separation between you and the recipient, the harder it is to be sure you’re giving to a legitimate fundraiser for the right person. One degree of separation is ideal, wherein you personally know the person who is fundraising for themselves. Two is slightly less ideal, where you know a person who is sharing a fundraising link on behalf of someone they personally know. Three is even less ideal, and four…you get the idea.
2. Don’t click the link
You might have heard not to click on links sent to you in emails or text messages you weren’t expecting, and this is true for links to supposed fundraisers. Scammers will play on your desire to do good and spoof links to look genuine. Once they get you to click on their fraudulent link they can do a number of malicious actions, compromising your personal information and taking your money. If someone shares a link to a crowdfunding site, opt instead to type in that website’s URL manually and search for the fund on the website.
3. Check official channels
If you’re looking to donate to a general fund, check to see if any news organizations or local governments are sharing links to fundraisers they’ve confirmed are authentic. You can check the official government websites of cities, counties, and states affected by natural disasters for these, as they sometimes share vetted fundraisers that will directly benefit their communities. For some disasters, GoFundMe’s Trust & Safety team will verify fundraisers, ensuring that your money is going to someone who genuinely needs it without you needing to know them personally.
4. Consider vetted charities
If you aren’t sure which individual fundraisers will be going directly to the people who need the money, consider giving only to registered 501(c)3 organizations that serve the larger community in need. Charity assessment websites such as GuideStar, Charity Navigator, and ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer can help you find a registered non-profit organization and gain insights on how they are governed and how they use their funds. You could also donate to large national organizations that you already know and trust.
5. Skip requests for Bitcoin
If someone is asking for donations to be made in the form of cryptocurrency (like Bitcoin), gift cards, cash, wire transfer, P2P app, or some other form of payment that gives you pause, find a different fundraiser to give to. If you can, opt to use your credit card to make donations, as there are more stop gaps in place than if you use a debit card.
If you believe you were the victim of a charity scam, report it to the Federal Trade Commission’s fraud reporting website or the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
It’s a good idea to keep an eye on your accounts, especially after making a donation. Jeanne D’Arc makes keeping tabs on your cards and accounts easy with Card Manager. Part of Online & Mobile Banking, Card Manager puts you in control, giving you the ability to view recent transactions on your credit and debit cards, set controls & fraud alerts, and even turn your cards on and off. Find out more about Card Manager on our website here.