Rise in international tensions sparks charity 'scam' warning

Friday 10 November 2023

Islanders are being warned to be careful before donating their money to unknown charities claiming to support international aid efforts amid concerns that scammers are using global conflicts to make money.

Charity Commissioner John Mills CBE said that the long-running war between Russia and Ukraine, as well as the more recent conflict between Israel and Hamas, could intensify pressure on individuals to donate to causes claiming to seek to alleviate the impact of war.

In a statement, the Commissioner said he wished to "warn citizens and charities to be especially watchful if approached to donate, and to be on the lookout for criminals and terrorist groups falsely posing as legitimate charities in order to solicit donations".

He added: "Criminals and terrorist groups commonly set up fake charities to take advantage of the public's generosity during times of special crisis and typically seek both money and personal information from a would-be-donor, personal details that can be used further to exploit the victim through identity theft."

The Commissioner said his advice was that islanders should always resist the temptation to donate on impulse to organisations that are not previously known to them.

Pictured: Charity Commissioner John Mills.

"It is best to donate only to registered charities which will ensure that monies received go only to the right places," he said.

Jersey-registered charities were also included in Mr Mills' warning – he said they should remain vigilant to the possibility of being used or exploited by terrorist groups, terrorist supporters, and their seemingly legitimate front organisations, in order to obtain, store or move funds that may be used in further terrorist activity and not for charitable purposes.