News

Fake Tsunami Appeals 
Posted on Wednesday, January 12, 2005 - 09:32 AM

There are dozens of bogus Web sites that prey on potential tsunami donors by mimicking sites of well-known charities. The fake sites, which have surfaced in recent days, range from crude to accurate replicas that use the charities' logos and photos.

Cybercrooks are using ''phishing'' and ''spoofing'' scam techniques. In these schemes, hundreds of thousands of people receive spam e-mails with links to charities. When unwary donors click on the links, they are directed to bogus Web sites, where they unwittingly give their credit card numbers and other financial data to the fraudsters.

Con artists also are using variations of the Nigerian ''419'' scam, named after the section of the Nigerian criminal code for the offense. The e-mail authors claim to be government officials, bank officers or dying philantropists with money to donate. A commission is promised to any who helps.

Cybersecurity experts say donors should ignore e-mails asking for money. They should check with the charities or with non-profit watchdog groups, such as Guidestar (www.guidestar.org), the Wise Giving Alliance (www.give.org), or Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org).