Charity Fraud
Deep down, each of us wants to help those who are less fortunate than we are. Many do this through donations to various non-profit organizations. Regrettably, con artists have discovered this is an easy method of wheedling money from people and have set up their own charity fronts.
Popular deceptions in recent years are charities supposedly set up to help needy children and families in foreign countries. Pictures and videos of malnourished, emaciated children and impoverished needy families are portrayed in pamphlets and television spots. Potential recipients are informed just how much their money will help and what it will provide for them.
While no one wants to see children or families suffer, donating money without a thorough knowledge of where it will go is not a wise decision. Within the past few years, several scams have demonstrated that the money collected for various charities have instead gone right into the scammers pockets and never reach the needy recipients. Unfortunately, the occurrence of such flagrant deceits has tainted all charities, and many of these organizations are authentic, working diligently to help those in need.
Often charities advertise through various media channels, such as television, magazines, and the Internet. They ask for donations from ten dollars up. The advertising itself is expensive, and much of the money goes for this purpose.
In one instance, the organization was properly registered and did send money overseas. Unfortunately, federal investigate showed that almost ninety percent of all donations were used to pay the large salaries of the directors for the charity. As such, this organization was not considered a true charity and was considered a scam.
Charity scams come in many forms. They can be requests on behalf of the homeless, fighting animal cruelty, the poor, and nearly any other type of help. While there are many legitimate charities in existence there is always someone in the wings that will use any means to remove money from one’s pockets in order to fill their own.
To avoid being taken in by a charity scam it is very important to investigate the organization thoroughly. An investigation can be conducted through sources such as the Internet, consumer complaint divisions, government agencies, the Better Business Bureau, and other such methods. If a telephone number and name is given it is important to use telephone services such as reverse-ip-searching.com/13/index.html to verify if the caller is really whom they claim to be.
Volunteers that go from door to door with cans collecting for a familiar organization are certainly open to suspicion. One has no way of knowing if this is where the money is going or if it is going into the collector’s pocket. If the organization is well-known, a direct donation is the best way to go.
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