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Source: ONE News -
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Beware scammers preying on the generosity of people trying to donate towards Haiti earthquake relief, the Security Awareness and Fraud Education (Safe) programme says.
Anti-virus software company Symantec has exposed one such scam in which an email was sent purportedly from the British Red Cross Society asking for payment via Western Union money transfer or deposit into a bank account.
"Any money sent using the instructions in their email would not help anyone in Haiti, it would end up in the pockets of a cyber-criminal," a Symantec security blogger wrote.
Western Union and Crimestoppers New Zealand are behind the Safe programme and said people should only send money to someone they knew or whose identity they could verify.
"New Zealanders have a history of being very generous towards victims of tragedy. The recent Haiti earthquake has seen these characteristics come to the fore again.
"Unfortunately past history also shows that tragedies see the activity of scammers accelerate to take advantage of the opportunity," they said in a statement.
Crimestoppers chief executive Lou Gardiner said people should be careful in evaluating donation programmes.
"They should ask some qualifying questions about the organisations they are seeking to donate to so they can establish the authenticity of the payment channel. If in doubt, seek advice."
Anyone who discovered a scam was asked to contact Crimestoppers, while anyone who fell victim to fraud should contact police.
