14th November 2013
Two days ago, the headline story on this website was about the awful damage and loss of life caused by Typhoon Haiyan but specifically, the probability of heartless scams perpetrated by fraudsters cashing in on other people's misery.
Now, a glance at the news will reveal that many others have alerted the public and businesses who might donate to the relief appeal, about the same issue. Public figures and security experts alike are joining the conversation.
Many reports of scams have already reached us, including an email shown here, originally notified on internet security company Symantec's website.
As we pointed out in our news story earlier in the week, some messages represent fraudulent appeals which are either phishing attacks designed to gain your personal or financial information, others are from fake charities appealing to you to 'donate' by card or bank transfer, whilst still others include malicious code designed to infect computers with viruses, spyware, or Trojan horses.
The UK's Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) – an umbrella organisation which launches and coordinates responses to major disasters overseas – has set up a specific appeal for Typhoon Haiyan relief, and is a safe and reliable way to donate. Do beware, however, of emails and social networking posts claiming to be from the DEC and if you wish to give via this channel, click on our link or type the address 'www.dec.org.uk' into your browser address line.
