Fraud Warning issued by Metropolitan Police
10 January 2005
Fraud alert warning - bogus charity messages for tsunami relief
The National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) is warning members of the public to be vigilant about donating to those claiming to be collecting for the Asian tsunami disaster.
Several scams have now been identified, including unsolicited emails (SPAM) offering to locate loved ones; requesting money be deposited in overseas banks to support the tsunami relief effort, and emails which seek personal or financial information in an effort to retrieve large amounts of inheritance funds tied up in relation to the tsunami disaster.
Other criminal activity also coming to light includes using the disaster as a front for spreading computer viruses. False websites have also been created purporting to be managed by legitimate relief organisations asking for donations. One of these sites contains an embedded object that can infect computers with a virus if accessed.
We do not in any way wish to dissuade members of the public from donating money to the registered charity Tsunami appeals.
· But we urge them to exercise vigilance in order to prevent and disrupt these and other possible criminal scams. In particular:
· Do not respond to any unsolicited (SPAM) incoming emails.
· Do not respond to text messages on mobile telephones from unknown sources.
· Be sceptical of individuals claiming to be surviving victims or foreign government officials asking you to place large sums of money in overseas bank accounts.
· Ensure that contributions to non-profit organisations are used for intended purposes. Contribute only to known charities and recognised outlets collecting on behalf of these charities.
· Go directly to the websites of recognised charities and aid organisations rather than following a link to another site.
· Try to verify the legitimacy of non-profit organisations (e.g. use Internet-based resources to help confirm the existence of the organisation and its non-profit status). Genuine charities are all registered with the Charities Commission.
· Be wary of emails that claim to show pictures of disaster areas in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
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