The Ego, The Market, and The Mania

From the Office of Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey:

The situation in Haiti is tragic and will require tremendous resources from the Federal government as well as individuals. This is a good time to remind ourselves of important safety measures related to disaster relief donations. Internet users who receive appeals to donate money in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti or other disasters should be cautious and use due diligence before responding to requests.

• Do not respond to unsolicited incoming e-mails, and NEVER click links contained within those messages;
• Make contributions directly to disaster response organizations rather than to individuals representing themselves as victims or public officials asking for donations via e-mail or social networking sites;
• To make a contribution contact disaster relief organizations directly using information found via an independent source, such as a phone book or 411, rather than following a purported link to the site;
• Verify the legitimacy of nonprofit organizations by utilizing various Internet-based resources, such as www.give.org and www.charitynavigator.org;
• Make contributions directly to recognizable organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes;
• Be cautious of e-mails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files – these files may contain viruses;
• Never give your personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions. Providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.

Denver DA’s Fraud Line: 720-913-9179