Don’t get scammed by phony charity

August 30, 2010 – 10:27 am

Mildred is a senior citizen who’s very involved in her community and who loves to help others.

So when she was called and asked to donate to the American Cancer Society, she was more than willing to help out. She gave the caller her debit card number and told him to withdraw $25 from her bank account. She even told him to do so in honor of her friend, Evelyn, who had died two years earlier with breast cancer.

A few days later, Mildred went to the bank to withdraw some money, and found her checking account had been emptied.

Mildred had been scammed.

Criminals seek out people, particularly elderly people, to victimize with such scams. They target those willing to help others, like Mildred, and take advantage of their generosity.

Often, thieves will not only ask for bank account information, but for personal information such as Social Security and driver’s license numbers too. This information can be used to obtain credit cards, and apply for utilities and cell phones, as well as payday loans and mortgages. Thieves will also commit crimes as well – and all of this is done using the name and information of the victim.

If you receive a telephone call from someone asking you for a donation, don’t give your personal or banking information out over the phone. Tell the caller you’ll contact the charity directly to make a donation. You should never give your personal information out over the phone to anyone, particularly if you didn’t initiate the call.

If you’d like to make a donation to a particular charity, you should contact the charity directly using the phone number provided on that charity’s literature or Web site.

Never use a number or Web site provided by a caller soliciting donations. The Web site could be a phishing attempt, which could be used to access your computer’s hard drive and retrieve your personal information, or infect your hard drive with malware.

If you are a senior citizen, you should be particularly mindful that there are people out there who would target you as a victim. Don’t be a victim. Be smart. Guard your personal information, don’t provide details to people you don’t know, whether in person, online or on the phone, and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.

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