Attorney General Todd Rokita is advising Hoosiers to do their research before donating to charities this Giving Tuesday. As always, the public should be vigilant and aware of scammers attempting to take advantage of their generosity.

“Hoosiers are good-hearted people. Unfortunately, that can leave them susceptible to fraudsters,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We all want to help out our neighbors and lend a helping hand at this time of year. We all should take steps to ensure we’re not filling scammers’ pockets rather than truly helping the needy.”

The Indiana Attorney General works to track down, investigate, and bring to justice the criminals who conduct illegal scams.

Giving Tuesday is a great time to show your gratitude by donating to help others, but we all want to make sure our money is in the right hands.

Attorney General Rokita offers the following tips:

Slow Down. A real charity will accept your donations any day of the week. If you feel pressured, take as much time as you need. Try researching and talking it over with others.
Research the cause or the organization. Search online for the name of the organization or cause with words like “review,” “scam,” or “complaint.” See if others have had good or bad experiences with the charity. Check out what charity watchdog groups say about that organization.
Know that it’s ok to ask questions. If the request for a donation is over the phone, the caller should be able to answer critical questions.
Know who’s making the request. Don’t assume a request to donate is legitimate because a friend posted it on social media. Your friend might not personally know the charity or how it spends money.

Make sure you are dealing with the real charitable organization. Be leery of year-end appeals from unknown or unfamiliar organizations you receive by phone, mail, email, and/or social media.
Always donate by credit card rather than cash or other methods. This will ensure you can access the protections available through your credit card company.
Look up a charity’s report and ratings on these websites:

If you ever suspect a scam of any type, file a complaint at indianaconsumer.com or call Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office at 1-800-382-5516.