FBI Warns of Holiday Charity Scams Targeting Donors

The agency warns of schemes that solicit donations for groups that do little or no real work for those in need.

Qualified charitable distributions offer eligible older Americans a way to give to charity before the end of the year. Dreamstime/TCA

The FBI warns of possible charity fraud targeting Americans looking to donate during the holiday season.

In a Dec. 2 bulletin posted to X, the FBI warned those looking to donate: “Beware of scammers who want to exploit your kindness—they only care about themselves.

“Before you donate to causes you care about ... research charities to confirm their legitimacy and follow these essential tips from the #FBI to safeguard your contributions.”

Officials urged the public to be alert to schemes that solicit donations for organizations that do little or even no real work with those in need.

Scams tend to increase during national disasters, during major emergencies, and whenever else people are looking for ways to help.

These ventures can present themselves in various forms, including emails, social media posts, crowdfunding platforms, and cold calls.

To avoid this type of scam, the FBI recommends that individuals who want to be charitable give only to established charities or groups whose work they are familiar with and trust.

“Be aware of organizations with copycat names or names similar to reputable organizations,” the FBI stated.

“Be wary of new organizations that claim to aid victims of recent high-profile disasters.”

Additionally, any group can be researched using the Federal Trade Commission’s resources to check the charity’s track record.

“Give using a check or credit card. If a charity or organization asks you to donate through cash, gift card, virtual currency, or wire transfer, it’s probably a scam,” the FBI said.

Also, the agency discourages opening links or email attachments from unknown senders, saying users can manually type links instead of clicking them.

Additionally, it is advised that no one provide personal information in response to an email, robocall, or text message.

In September, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 22 agencies from 19 states put a halt to a cancer charity fundraising scheme that allegedly raised millions of dollars but disbursed only a small fraction of the donations.

The charity, Kars-R-Us.com, and operators Lisa Frank and Michael Irwin, allegedly solicited donations for the United Breast Cancer Foundation, which was supposed to assist those suffering from cancer, according to a Sept. 25 statement.

“Kars solicited vehicle donations through national and local TV, radio and online ads in English and Spanish, claiming the donations would allow UBCF to ‘save lives’ by providing free and low-cost breast cancer screenings,” the statement reads.

“But, in reality, only $126,815 or 0.28 [percent] of the more than $45 million that Kars raised was used to provide breast cancer screenings.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Kars for comment but did not receive a response.

Additionally, the organization has accepted cars, boats, and recreational vehicles on behalf of various nonprofit organizations since at least 2009, doing business as “DONATE CAR 2 VETERANS” and “donation2charity.com.”

The FTC reported that the defendants in the case retained 80 to 90 percent of the gross amount raised to pay themselves and their vendors, and 10 to 20 percent went to the charity.

Naveen Athrappully contributed to this report.