PayPal and Venmo take great pride in helping our customers connect with important causes and donate to charities through our platforms. It’s always heartwarming to see our communities come together to raise critical funds and help one another, especially during times of great need like disasters or unexpected events.
Keep in mind that when generous people step up to support others, fraudsters may attempt to capitalize on the community’s goodwill by perpetrating common “impersonation scams”. Scammers might pose as reputable charities or individuals supporting relief efforts to trick well-meaning people into making “donations” or sharing personal information through a variety of tactics.
We do not tolerate fraudulent activity on our platforms and work diligently to protect our customers. We recommend donating through trusted channels like PayPal Cause Hub and Venmo Charity Profiles, where the profiles of charities have been vetted by our team of experts.
In addition, we highly encourage customers to always stay mindful online and up to speed on scam trends. Check out our tips below on how to spot and avoid the most common charity scams:
Phishing attempts: Bad actors may impersonate a charity and send convincing texts, emails, or social media messages that encourage clicking on phishing links, calling scam phone numbers, or otherwise solicit personal information and money.
- Tip: Never call any listed phone numbers, open attachments, or click on any links from unexpected messages. Do not respond to requests for personal or financial information, including account passwords. Forward suspicious messages to phishing@paypal.com, and then delete them. Learn more about identifying and reporting phishing messages on the PayPal and Venmo websites.
Aggressive tactics: Scammers cold-call people and send high-pressure messages that create an undue sense of urgency and push personal boundaries to pressure you. Reputable charities will not use emotionally manipulative tactics to fundraise, even during times of great need.
- Tip: Trust your gut. If something seems off about an interaction, it probably is. Take a pause to reflect, remove yourself from the situation, and hold off on sending any money until you can verify the request’s legitimacy.
Lack of transparency: Fraudsters share little to no information about how they receive and use donations, whereas legitimate charities are transparent, including typically sharing financial reports, and are happy to answer questions from donors about what activities their funds support.
- Tip: If someone is vague or refuses to share any information about their cause or how donations are used, it’s likely a scam.
Unverified: Some scammers create fake websites and social media accounts that mimic reputable organizations. Legitimate charities in the U.S. are also typically federally registered and tax-exempt, and scammers may falsely claim to have these statuses.
- Tip: Research and confirm that a charity is legitimate before donating any funds. Further verify that charities are registered or tax-exempt through the IRS and BBB. Many states also require charities to register, which you can check through your state’s office of the attorney general or secretary of state.
Inconsistent communication: Scammers often change their contact methods, quickly alternating between phone calls, texts, emails, and social media, and regularly update the language they use to evade detection.
- Tip: Be wary if you receive outreach through many different contact channels over a short period of time from the same or similar source.
Account impersonation: Scammers might try to impersonate individuals who are fundraising by closely mimicking their account name (e.g. “char1ty” instead of “charity”).
- Tip: Report and block any accounts attempting to perpetrate scams. Review account profiles and their spelling, pay attention to pop-up warnings about interacting with the wrong user, and stop to confirm you are sending money to the correct place before tapping the final verification button.
Device theft: If someone approaches you in-person to solicit donations and asks to use your phone during the interaction, it may be a scam.
- Tip: Never hand your phone to a stranger. Follow general best practices and enable enhanced layers of security for any devices or apps involving sensitive information. Complete multi-factor authentication and enable touch ID, face ID, and PIN features directly within apps where available, including on PayPal and Venmo.
More Ways to Stay Safe
If you encounter a scam, reach out to verified support channels to report it. Visit the PayPal and Venmo contact pages or reach customer service directly through our apps. Consider reporting any scams to law enforcement and the FTC and BBB Scam Trackers as well. Remember that scammers solicit money from a variety of payment sources, including bank wire transfers, checks, and credit cards.
Finally, learning about and spreading awareness of the latest common fraud trends and how to stop them is key to keeping everyone safe. We actively partner with leading consumer protection institutions, such as the BBB, AARP, FTC, Aspen Institute, FTA, and Consumers International to help highlight ways to avoid scams. Check out our free educational resources on the PayPal and Venmo websites.