September 1, 2005

  • We got calls today in the Department from a father who was distraught after losing their home. He and his family were in their car driving from New Orleans. He, crying, asked me what the cost of living was here in California, saying that he wasn't sure if their home was still standing. They were worried that they had lost everything. I did all I could to just keep from shedding a tear, but it was to no avail. I could hear his anguish, I could feel his pain, and I could sense his suffering.


    And yet, with something like this going on, I get this e-mail also through the Department.


    In the aftermath of the hurricane damage, many people are eager to help by sending donations to various charities. There are many good and reputable charities, but this is a heads-up that some disaster relief donation requests are not legitimate.


    Please be advised that there are numerous scams already in place to take advantage of potential givers. Some of these are email and phishing scams, some involve fake web sites, and some are phony charities (and various combinations of all of these). In some cases the scammers are after credit card numbers or other personal information to be used for identity theft; in other cases they just want to take your donation. (Not all of the disaster relief scams are internet based - you may see people collecting money on street corners and in front of markets and I don't know of any way to identify which ones are there for what reasons.)


    There are numerous legitimate web sites and mail addresses for disaster relief donations. Please use your good judgment in deciding what to do.


    ~~~~~~~~


    Fake Hurricane emails


    Like after similar events in the past, we do expect scams and viruses to take advantage of this situation. Please be careful with e-mails containing 'hurricane videos' as attachments, or e-mail asking for donations. Refer to fema.gov for a list of reputable agencies or donate to organizations you trust and have past experience with.

    Where's the decency?