AS Australians dig deep this Christmas the nation’s charity regulator is urging donors to beware. The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) says too many of us are being fooled by scammers that pretend to be a charity.
Commissioner Dr Gary Johns says losses to fake charities have risen. “Financial losses officially reported to mid October this year are already higher than the whole of last year. Checking our online Charity Register is a simple way to make sure your money is goes to a real charity that does great work,” he said.
According to Scamwatch $133,770 was reported lost to scammers to 17 October this year compared with $133, 214 for the whole of 2020. “We know reported scams are just the tip of the iceberg as often people don’t know they have been conned or are too embarrassed to make a report,” Dr Johns said. “The community is certainly becoming more aware of how valuable the Register is. It was searched about five million times in the past 12 months. Our latest data recorded $11.8 billion in donations to the sector, and it is critical we maintain and build on the community’s confidence in our charities.”
Before you make a donation the ACNC recommends you:
- Do a quick check to see if the organisation is on the ACNC Charity Register and details about its main work.
- Don’t click on links in unsolicited emails and social media posts which may take you to a fake, scam website. Find the charity’s website in a search engine or on the Charity Register.
- Don’t give your credit card and bank account details on social media and be cautious online
- Look for established, registered charities running verified appeals.
- If you get a call claiming to be from a charity, say you’ll call back. Search the Charity Register and call back on the number shown there.
- Always ask for identification from collectors at a shopping centre, on the street or at your front door.
- Check the label on a donation bin to check if it is for charitable collection.
Scamwatch is a service of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) to find out information on a Charity’s registration status