Donors in Malta & Sweden warned of fraudulent fundraisers

The Malta Red Cross and Giva Sverige have both warned donors in their respective countries to be wary of fraudulent fundraising activity.

In Sweden, fraudsters have been going door-to-door and appear to be “well-prepared” and are using “fake logos on websites and printed materials”, a warning on Giva Sverige’s website says. It continues:

“Giva Sverige takes very seriously the fact that fraudsters exploit people’s willingness to give, as it risks undermining trust in nonprofits and affecting the willingness to get involved.”

In its article, Giva Sverige article provides six tips for members of the public to help keep them safe from fraudulent fundraisers, including making sure that the purported organisation uses a well-known payment solution and asking whether it is a member of Giva Sverige.

Meanwhile, a Facebook post by the Malta Red Cross said it had been “alerted to unauthorised solicitations for donations allegedly on behalf of the Red Cross”.

It published a pixellated photo of a woman appearing to approach workers in a shop with a clipboard listing donations.

The Malta Red Cross says that its fundraising activity “is always clearly communicated through our official channels”, and advises anyone suspecting fraudulent activity to report it to the authorities.

Fundraising fraud is a regular concern in a number of other countries, both online and via face-to-face activity. In March, the British charity Disability Rights UK alerted the public and police to a case of fraudsters pretending to be deaf and using sign language as part of a sham collection, according to Civil Society News.

Picture by Markus Winkler on Unsplash