BBB alert: Beware of potential campaign fundraising impostor scams
The Better Business Bureau is alerting people to watch out for a variety of potential campaign fundraising scams pretending to be from official political candidates.
It’s expected that scammers could be capitalizing on the recent changes in the 2024 U.S. presidential race.
“Scammers have been known to create phony websites; fraudulent donor solicitations; imitation social media ads; fake volunteer applications; and scam emails/texts and phone calls,” said Steve J. Bernas, BBB president and CEO. “They might even knock on your door asking for money.”
The deluge of requests may be overwhelming, but don’t let your guard down. Bernas warns.
“Fraudsters are counting on people being so busy they won’t take the time to scrutinize solicitations,” he said.
For example, you might receive a robocall and answer the phone. It’s a recorded voice — perhaps even one that sounds just like one of the presidential candidates. According to the recording, rivals have been raising a lot of money. In order to see your favorite candidate elected, you need to donate immediately.
If you offer to give, you’ll be transferred to a live person and asked for your credit card information. But your money might not be going to the campaign to support the political cause. Instead, the phony caller may make off with your money and/or personal information that can be used for identity theft.
Con artists could create counterfeit websites that, at first glance, appear to belong to a political candidate. But looking more closely at the URL, you’ll notice the domain name is slightly different. There might be a hyphen instead of a period. A few letters could be added to the domain name.
Make certain the website is secure. Look for the “HTTPS” in the URL (the extra “s” is for “secure”) and a small lock icon on the address bar. Never enter payment or personal information into a website with only “HTTP.” It is NOT secure.
Do not click on links or download attachments from unknown emails. This ruse is meant to get your credit card information, account login details, or remote access to your computer. They will try to download malware onto your computer and/or steal your personal information.
Scammers will ask you to work for a candidate. Do not put your full address, birth date, Social Security number or bank account number on any online quiz or work application or volunteer application until you verify it is legit. Do not provide this private information to unverified recruiters. Also, it can be easy to conduct fake virtual or phone interviews.
Professional-looking photos do not mean it’s the actual candidate. Scammers often steal photos from other websites, so don’t believe everything that you see.
Make donations only with your credit card. It’s easier to dispute a credit card payment. Paying by wire transfer or prepaid debit card is like using cash. There is almost nothing you can do to get the money back.
If you have experienced a scam, even if you didn’t lose money, report it to BBB ScamTracker. Sign up for BBB’s free consumer newsletter, BBB Edge, at BBB.org/ChicagoBuzz. Visit BBB.org or follow us @ChicagoBBB on social media. Look for the BBB seal, the sign of a better business.