NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As refugees continue to escape from Afghanistan, organizations are asking for donations to help with those efforts.
But beware, the Better Business Bureau says scammers are taking advantage of people’s generosity.
Because of this, the BBB felt the need to issue a warning to donors as they’re seeing more scammers post online pleas for money saying they’re contributing to these relief efforts.
The BBB said some of these scams are found on crowdfunding sites because those problems aren’t always vetting significantly enough.
Scammers are using QR codes to trick people into opening malicious links.
Donors are encouraged to watch out for these three red flags:
- Excessive pressure to give on the spot. Legitimate charities will welcome your support any time.
- Claims that 100% is going to go to assist victims. Most credible organizations have administrative costs.
- Charities without an established presence in the country they're serving.
"We're seeing a lot of American generosity at play in terms of interests and wanting to give to these organizations," said Bennett Weiner, BBB Wise Giving Alliance executive vice president. "Check out the organization before you give after you've made the donation very difficult if not impossible to recover funds once they've been transferred."
The BBB said the safest option is to go directly to a charity’s website and make your donation there.
