In this edition, we focus on: Charity Scams.
The holiday season is the time when scammers are gearing up to find unsuspecting people to exploit.
The holiday season is the time when people want to be giving and kind to others. It should also be the time to be vigilant of scams.
This is how charity scams work: the scammer will pose as a representative of a charity or a nonprofit organization either online, phone, or in person. They will then ask you to make a donation. If the person seems to be pushy and aggressive with asking for donations, be wary as the person you are talking to might not be who they say they are.
If you decide to make a donation, the Better Business Bureau advises you to verify their information by visiting give.org, the BBB's Wise Giving Alliance website. if the charity they are claiming to be from is legitimate, make the donation directly to the organization instead of the person who contacted you. If they request for you to make a donation through a wire transfer or a gift card, hang up or walk away.
A resident from Reno recently reported to the BBB Scam Tracker their experience with a charity scam:
"I received a message from an Instagram account soliciting donations for a charity, the same name as a very large and successful GoFundMe campaign. The website lists a tax ID number with an LLC.
"The LLC was voluntarily dissolved and the listed reason was that an imposter opened a fictitious account and started a fundraising scam under the name of the charity. I donated to the fictitious charity by mistake via Cashapp. I have donated to several charities as well as personal fundraisers. The charity, however, is a scam, as stated by the voluntary dissolution report."
If you suspect that you have been scammed, you can file a report with local law enforcement at renopd.com.
Remember, scammers see the holiday season as an opportunity to dupe unsuspecting people by exploiting their kindness and even going so far as pretending to be from a charity. It is the season to give, but make sure you are giving to a legitimate organization. Make donations through their actual website, instead of making payments to a person who might be scamming you.
For more tips on how you can protect yourself from romance scams,
