Ongoing Charity Scams — What to Watch Out For
Author: Trend Micro
This article is from Trend Micro.
During times of great human suffering, it’s only natural to want to help out. If you’re considering making a donation to help those affected by the conflict in Eastern Europe, you’ve likely wondered which charitable organization you should send it to. The truth is, there are many excellent organizations helping out, but there are also many causes appealing to your generosity that aren’t who they say they are.
We’ve compiled some examples of the ways these deceptive organizations may contact you below, as well as a list of sites that are not what they appear to be, but in general, be extra wary of people and organizations contacting you through social media, email, or text message.
Charity email scams
Below are two examples of scammers looking to appeal to people’s generosity via email. Note how both messages provide cryptocurrency wallet addresses (that we’ve blurred) but don’t mention other ways to donate. When an organization only accepts donations via cryptocurrency, it’s a big sign that it’s a scam.
Fake charity websites
Lots of Ukraine-related websites have been created recently, many of which claim to be accepting donations to help those impacted by the ongoing conflict. Unfortunately, a lot of these websites are operated by scammers. Although many of the URLs listed below appear to be legitimate, they have all been confirmed as SCAM websites:
- helpingukraine[.]org
- support-ukraine[.]eu
- donatetoukraine[.]org
- help-for-ukraine[.]eu
- supportukraine[.]net
- supportukraine[.]io
- help-ukraine[.]org
- supportukrainenow[.]com
Below are some examples of these malicious websites.
support-ukraine[.]eu – It’s a SCAM!
supportukrainenow[.]com – It’s a SCAM!
Avoid scam websites with Trend Micro Check
Trend Micro Check is a completely free all-in-one browser extension for detecting scams, phishing attacks, malware, and dangerous links. Available for Safari, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge.
NFTs for sale on OpenSea
We’ve observed people selling NFTs on the NFT marketplace OpenSea and stating that proceeds from sales will be sent to those affected by the conflict. However, because it is likely that these independent sellers are not affiliated with any legitimate charity helping people in Ukraine, if you are looking to donate, it is best to do so through other means.
Several Ukraine-related NFTs for sale on OpenSea. Source: Reddit
Appeals for donations on social media
Scammers have been posting on various social media platforms, claiming to be Ukrainian citizens in need of financial assistance. They’re not hard to spot, either — they commonly ask for the transfer of cryptocurrency or money via PayPal.
A scammer on Twitter asking for Bitcoin. Source: Reddit
A scammer posting to Reddit. Source: Reddit
YouTube livestream charity donation scam
One particularly deceptive Ukraine-related scam occurred on YouTube recently. Scammers renamed an existing YouTube channel to “Government of Ukraine” and held a highly convincing livestream designed to encourage viewers to donate cryptocurrency to people affected by the conflict in Eastern Europe. Although YouTube has since closed the fraudulent channel, please watch out for similar scams.
The fraudulent YouTube livestream. Source: Reddit
Some things to think about before donating
- Research the organization to see if it has a good rating.
- Find out what percentage of your donation will go directly to relief efforts.
- Ensure the charity has previous experience working with people in the impacted area.
- Ask if the charity has experience in emergency relief.
Report a Scam!
Have you fallen for a hoax, bought a fake product? Report the site and warn others!
Scam Categories
Help & Info
Popular Stories
As the influence of the internet rises, so does the prevalence of online scams. There are fraudsters making all kinds of claims to trap victims online - from fake investment opportunities to online stores - and the internet allows them to operate from any part of the world with anonymity. The ability to spot online scams is an important skill to have as the virtual world is increasingly becoming a part of every facet of our lives. The below tips will help you identify the signs which can indicate that a website could be a scam. Common Sense: Too Good To Be True When looking for goods online, a great deal can be very enticing. A Gucci bag or a new iPhone for half the price? Who wouldn’t want to grab such a deal? Scammers know this too and try to take advantage of the fact. If an online deal looks too good to be true, think twice and double-check things. The easiest way to do this is to simply check out the same product at competing websites (that you trust). If the difference in prices is huge, it might be better to double-check the rest of the website. Check Out the Social Media Links Social media is a core part of ecommerce businesses these days and consumers often expect online shops to have a social media presence. Scammers know this and often insert logos of social media sites on their websites. Scratching beneath the surface often reveals this fu
So the worst has come to pass - you realise you parted with your money too fast, and the site you used was a scam - what now? Well first of all, don’t despair!! If you think you have been scammed, the first port of call when having an issue is to simply ask for a refund. This is the first and easiest step to determine whether you are dealing with a genuine company or scammers. Sadly, getting your money back from a scammer is not as simple as just asking. If you are indeed dealing with scammers, the procedure (and chance) of getting your money back varies depending on the payment method you used. PayPal Debit card/Credit card Bank transfer Wire transfer Google Pay Bitcoin PayPal If you used PayPal, you have a strong chance of getting your money back if you were scammed. On their website, you can file a dispute within 180 calendar days of your purchase. Conditions to file a dispute: The simplest situation is that you ordered from an online store and it has not arrived. In this case this is what PayPal states: "If your order never shows up and the seller can't provide proof of shipment or delivery, you'll get a full refund. It's that simple." The scammer has sent you a completely different item. For example, you ordered a PlayStation 4, but instead received only a Playstation controller. The condition of the item was misrepresented on the product page. This could be the