LA Wildfires: Scammers Turn Up the Heat on Victims

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While LA is battling the wildfires, there's another kind of fire spreading: charity scams. And holy cow, they're getting creative.

Even Kim Kardashian had to jump on social media the other day to warn her followers because scammers were literally pretending to be her to run fake fundraisers. But that's just the tip of this very messed up iceberg.

These scammers are actually stealing photos of destroyed homes from real fire victims and using them to create fake crowdfunding campaigns. Imagine losing everything in a fire, only to find out some stranger is using your tragedy to pocket donations meant for you. Yeah, it's that bad.

And here's where these scammers got especially devious: The majority of people are absolute suckers for anything involving injured pets. So of course they post fake stories about animals hurt in the fires, complete with heartbreaking photos and urgent pleas for surgery money. But one of the most twisted schemes I've seen? These scammers find people with missing pets and contact them pretending to be vets or rescue workers. They tell these desperate pet owners they've found their furry family member, but – surprise! – they need immediate payment for emergency care, or else.... It's emotional blackmail of the worst kind.

Think about it: When disaster strikes, everyone wants to help, and we want to help NOW. Scammers know this. They've actually gotten so professional that they're buying email lists off the dark web and using pre-made scam toolkits (yes, that's a real thing) to create fake charity websites that look legit enough to fool even tech-savvy folks.

How to Not Get Got

I'm not here to just make you paranoid. Let's talk about how to shut these scammers down:

• First off, slow your roll. I know you want to help immediately, but taking five minutes to verify won't hurt anyone. If someone's pushing you to act "RIGHT NOW OR ELSE," that's your first red flag.

• Got a donation link? Cool. Open a new tab and Google the organization yourself instead of clicking it. Even one wrong letter in a web address could mean you're on a fake site. For example: "Red Cr0ss."

• And PLEASE, if someone asks you to pay with gift cards or crypto, run. That's not a thing legitimate charities do. Ever.

These scammers are profiting off someone's worst day ever. Every dollar that goes to these frauds is a dollar that doesn't help someone who just lost everything.

So yeah, donate. Help. Keep being one of the good ones. Just do it through verified channels like GoFundMe's verified campaigns or legit organizations you can check on Charity Navigator.

And please, PLEASE share this with your people. Especially that aunt who shares everything on Facebook without checking. We all have one, and scammers love her.

Don't Get Got!

P.S. Your experiences matter. If you've encountered a scam or hack and have insights to share, we invite you to connect with us. Let's build a community that stands against cyber threats.