The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Money
Scammers cash in on Ukraine crisis with bogus websites pleading for help
People making charitable donations to help families in war-torn Ukraine have been warned they risk handing over their money to fraudsters.
Those trying to help have become the target of criminal gangs exploiting the crisis in eastern Europe with bogus fundraising websites and sham begging letters.
The City of London Police said it had already found at least five rogue websites soliciting money that they claimed would go to Ukrainians.
The true figure is expected to be far higher as many sham websites go unreported.
People in Britain have donated more of their money to support besieged Ukrainians via charity website GoFundMe than any other country in the world.
The Help Ukraine Emergency Appeal has so far raised more than £2m, making it the biggest ever GoFundMe campaign in the country.
Other donors have used the hosting website Airbnb to get money directly into the pockets of Ukrainians by booking and paying for holiday accommodation in the country with no intention of travelling there.
More than a million people have visited Airbnb’s dedicated “help Ukraine” web page so far.
However, experts urged extreme caution before sending money.
BBC presenter Simon Calder of RipOff Britain said: “Warning: were I a Russian scammer, I would be setting up fake Airbnbs in Kyiv and Odesa as fast as I could to cash in on those noble intentions.”
The website said fake posts were rare but admitted they did occur. It said it was actively evaluating who listed accommodation to rent, with “robust measures in place to detect and deter fraudulent activity” and “sophisticated technologies and d behavioural analysis techniques” ” which help to block bad actors. .
Fraudsters are also using the tried- ied- andtested method of spam emailing.
One fake plea from a scammer mer posing as a Ukrainrainian refugee family mily stranded in Poland, land, seen by this newspaper, asked for help to find food. It said: “We have a newborn baby who is badly injured. I need your help and I know you are a good person. “I lost my mother and elder brother to Russia[n] President Putin’s bombing in Ukraine. “I am pleading with you to please help me with your support to help my family and some other people who are here with us. “We have not been able to eat for three days now and are stranded. I can send you the information of the person at the house we are staying to send your financial support directly to him.” The Charity Commission and the Regulator have urged donations to be sure the are sending is going to worthwhile cause. advised doublechecking the name of any charity on official registers at gov.uk, as well as looking out for the purple fundraising badge. This is a stamp of approval from the regulator that ensures the charity raises funds in line with an industry code of ethics.