In the time of giving, here's how to protect yourself from charitable scams

Between Giving Tuesday, the celebration of generosity that follows Thanksgiving, and the year’s end with the deadline it brings to deduct gifts on 2023 tax returns, charitable instincts can kick into overdrive.

That makes this an important time, experts caution, to make sure you know the difference between giving and getting taken.

State and federal consumer watchdogs suggest backing up routine precautions with easy research.

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Watch out when they ask for cash, gift cards or wiring money

Technology gaps may make older family members more vulnerable to fake charities. Encourage those you know to seek help or input from trusted friends or relatives to confirm their charitable giving is going to the right place.

Signs that you are dealing with a con artist include a request for a donation in cash, by gift card or by wiring money. These are all preferred currency for scammers.

Scammers may break the ice by thanking you for your past support. If you don’t remember giving previously, the problem may not be your memory. The problem may be that you’ve got a fraudster on the phone.

They may also appeal to you with a guarantee you’ll win a prize in exchange for your donation. No legitimate organization would make such a promise because it is illegal.

Urgency is also a standard scammer ploy. A legitimate organization can balance its books carefully enough that it can wait for your contribution — while you check them out.

Bear in mind that scammers can change the number that will appear on your caller ID to make it look like a local number.

Check before you write a check

If you are being solicited by a charity, know who you are dealing with. An organization may have an impressive sounding name or one similar to a well known charity but have very different goals that can include pocketing your donation.

Social media offers opportunities for scammers to launch crowdfunding campaigns.

If you are thinking of donating to a campaign posted, shared or liked by a friend, contact your friend offline first and ask what they know about the campaign. If they don’t know the organizer, try learning more with an online search. Your web browser can help you do a reverse image search of any photos used on crowdfunding campaign page. If the images are associated with people, places or events that don’t match what the crowdfunding campaign is saying, you may be dealing with a con.

Don’t be swayed by sentimental or sensational appeals. Ask any charity or organization to which you are planning to donate what your gift will be used for. Even if a charity is legitimate, this question can make a difference, with so many charitable choices, how you decide to spend your donation dollars.

More: Florida's Check-a-Charity website

If you are in Florida, you can check out any legitimate charity on the state’s online Check-a-Charity site, where you can learn an organization’s total revenue, the percent of its funds that go to the actual services it provides and how that compares to fundraising and staff costs.

If you are looking outside of Florida, you can find charity regulators for any state at the National Association of State Charity Officials at nasconet.org.

If a charity offers thank-you gifts, bear in mind these add to fund-raising costs. You can get more bang for your benevolence by donating directly to the charity and foregoing the gift. If you are being solicited by telephone, you are likely talking to a paid marketer, not a volunteer, and that telemarketing is an expensive form of fundraising. Similarly, some organizations have 900 phone numbers, which means the potentially expensive call will automatically be billed to you.

If a tax deduction is important to you, ask about the organization’s eligibility to receive deductible donations. As worthy as a cause may sound, not all organizations are true charities eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions. A scammer may claim that your donation is tax deductible when it is not. You can confirm that an organization is registered with the IRS as a charity in the agency’s Tax Exempt Organization Search tool.

A tax deduction is not the only reason to always obtain and save a printed copy of your donation or a receipt showing the amount of the contribution. Keeping a record of all donations and then reviewing your bank or credit card statements is a good way to make sure you’ve only given the amount you agreed to donate, and not signed up to make a recurring donation.

Finally, if you have been scammed, it’s not too late to make a difference. Report charity scams through Florida’s online complaint form and to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Antigone Barton is a reporter with The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at avbarton@pbpost.com. Help support our work:Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida has help for protecting yourself against scam charities