Beware of Fake Hurricane Relief Charities

Scammers love to prey on the kindness and compassion of people. That’s why they are using fake charities to try to defraud victims of Hurricanes Helene and Milton and those willing to help them.

They send unsolicited emails, texts, phone calls, and social media messages that may even appear legitimate and from a well-known charity. These communications often direct you to a website to enter personal and payment information or ask you to click on a link or download a file that could allow a scammer to download malicious software (“malware”) onto your computer.

Scammers also use crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe to trick people into donating money to help hurricane victims. Unfortunately, those donations never make it to the victims.

Ways to protect yourself

• Send money only to known/established charities. Visit the Better Business Bureau, Charity Watch, or Charity Navigator to verify the authenticity of a charity.
• Watch for variations of a legitimate charity’s website address or email. For example, you may see “.com” or “.net” instead of “.org” (“.org” is what legitimate charities use).
• To verify that the request is from a real charity, visit that charity’s own website.
• Do not respond to unsolicited emails, texts, social media, or phone calls from a charity looking for donations.
• Watch for high-pressure tactics that prompt you to act immediately. Legitimate charities don’t use these tactics.
• When making charitable donations, don’t send cash and don’t use GoFundMe unless you’re sure the organizer is legitimate.
• Beware of charities that ask you to send gift cards to help victims. A true charity would never ask for this type of payment.
• If you write a check, make it payable to the charity, not an individual or third party.

Learn more about hurricane relief

• Tips from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about how to make your hurricane relief donations count.
• Ways the U.S. government is working to help those impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.
• The FEMA app to help you stay up to date on the latest information and resources.
• FEMA’s rumors and myths about hurricane relief response.

bankESB is looking out for you.

We’re committed to keeping you informed of the latest scams and how to protect your money and personal information. If you think you’ve been the victim of a scam, visit your local branch or call Customer Care at 855.527.4111.