Local villagers from Chautara, north east of Kathmandu, are in need of food and supplies. BBB and others are advising people how they can make sure their money gets to the victims. Photo credit: Jessica Lea/Wikimedia Commons
With the death toll in Nepal’s earthquake projected to climb to as many as 10,000 people, Tennesseans are looking for ways they can help. At the same time, organizations such as the Better Business Bureau, say scammers are looking for ways to take advantage of generosity. The BBB’s “give.org” website has information on charities providing aid to victims. Individual efforts are also common on social media. Nancy Crawford, spokesperson for the Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South, says if you choose that route, make sure you know the person directly or indirectly. “With things like crowd-sourcing, crowd-funding, you want to do as much homework as you can and make sure you understand that in those cases,” she says. “There may not be a way to prove that the money that you’re sending is indeed getting to the victims who need it.” Reports from Nepal indicate that aid is slow in getting to the remote villages. Identifying a reputable charity that accepts monetary donations to purchase food and supplies on the ground in the region will also help boost the local economy. In addition to people posing as charities to redirect money to their wallet, Crawford says a relatively new problem is people posting photos and videos on social media to gain access to your computer. It’s called “click-baiting.” “Somebody posts a teaser headline and says, ‘click here for shocking photos of earthquake victims,’ and the danger in that is, oftentimes, when you click on those kinds of links they download some type of malware to your computer and you could get a virus of you can have something running in the background that’s searching through your stuff trying to find personal information,” says Crawford. If you do want to donate to relief efforts, it’s recommended you research not only the organization’s reputation, but also it’s specific presence in Nepal. Unlike other regions impacted by natural disasters in the past, some regions of Nepal are rural and difficult to navigate.
