Donating to Charities? Read this first

4/15/2019 (Permalink)

As a business owner, you are always being solicited for donations. Here at SERVPRO of Lenoir, Duplin and Jones Counties we are giving a few tips to avoid being scammed when giving donations to charitable organizations. 

1. Do not donate through your email account. Scammers can send phishing emails to get your credit card number, debit card number or other personal information.

2. Never donate money in cash. The best way is to pay by check or credit card so you will have access to a history of your transactions. Be cautious of any charities asking for cash donations or to wire them money because you will have no record of the transaction and no way to get back to you if it is a scam.

3. Pay attention to email solicitations. Be cautious of emails that say they have pictures of disaster locations that are email attachments. Those emails could contain viruses, so only open attachments only if you know who the sender is.

4. Pay attention to website addresses. The most reliable charities will end in .org instead of .com. Another red flag is that legitimate charities do not normally solicit donations through money transfer services.

We at SERVPRO of Lenoir, Duplin and Jones Counties want you to understand these valuable tips so your donations get to those who are in desperate need of them.