Life Events

Generous people are a target. Scammers invent charities, copy the names of real ones and exploit disasters and holidays to collect donations. A few habits make it much harder for them to succeed.

Common warning signs

• Pressure to give right now. Legitimate charities welcome your gift next week.
• Vague answers about what the charity does or how your money will be used.
• A name very similar to a well-known charity. Imitators rely on confusion.
• Requests for cash, gift cards, wire transfers or cryptocurrency. These are hard to trace and hard to recover.
• Thank-you notices for gifts you never made, or claims that you pledged earlier.
• Promises that a donation is guaranteed deductible or will improve your chances in a sweepstakes.
• Unsolicited contact after a disaster, especially through social media, crowdfunding pages or text messages.

How to check a charity

1. Ask for the exact name, address and a way to give directly through the charity's own website.
2. Check that it is a recognized tax-exempt organization using the IRS search tool at irs.gov.
3. Look up its annual information return (Form 990) to see how it spends money.
4. Check with the state agency that regulates charities. Georgia charities generally must register with the Secretary of State.
5. Search the name along with words like complaint or scam.

Safe giving habits

• Type the web address yourself instead of following links in emails or texts.
• Pay by check or credit card, so you have a record and some protection.
• Never give your Social Security number, bank login or card details to someone who calls you.
• Be skeptical of callers who say they represent police or firefighter groups, which are a common cover.
• Ask what percentage of your gift goes to the cause, and note that professional fundraisers may keep a large share.

Tax angle

A gift to a sham organization is not deductible, and you will likely lose the money. Gifts to individuals, including crowdfunding campaigns for a person, are generally not charitable deductions even when the cause is worthy.

If you have been targeted

Stop contact, tell your bank or card issuer immediately and report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission and your state attorney general. You can also report suspected fraudulent tax-exempt organizations to the IRS through irs.gov.

If you are unsure whether a donation will be deductible, ask our firm before you give.