UK Charity Commission warns fraudsters targeting £130m of Ramadan fundraising

More donations are expected to be given online this year due to Covid restrictions

Google search traffic has been dominated by Ramadan terms over the past few days. Getty Images

Britain's charity watchdog has issued a warning over fears that fraudsters could try and target some of the £130 million ($178.6m) expected to be raised during Ramadan.

The Charity Commission is expecting more donations to be given online this year due to Covid-19 restrictions and is urging people to take precautions to check aid groups are genuine before donating.

Last year £130m was raised during Ramadan in the UK.

"Ramadan is a time of huge generosity among British Muslims and Muslim communities across the UK have continued to support charities close to home and around the world over the past year, so they can continue to play a vital role in strengthening communities and improving lives during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic," the watchdog said.

"Increased online giving is expected this Ramadan, with a reduction in cash collections, as mosques and community centres have social distancing measures in place.

"Most fundraising is genuine, however fraudsters and criminals may sometimes take advantage of public generosity at times of increased giving, using various methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities."

It has issued guidance for Muslims to follow to ensure charitable appeals are legitimate.

The first step includes checking the charity’s name and registration number at gov.uk/checkcharity.

"Most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered, make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information – it’s okay to decide not to give on the spot," it said.

"Be wary of unsolicited emails from charities you have never heard of and be careful when responding to emails or clicking on links within them.

"Exercise the same caution as with any other internet transaction, for example, to donate online, visit the charity’s own website and always type the website address into the browser yourself.

"Ignore requests to donate through a money transfer company and if in doubt about an approach, give instead to a charity that you have an existing relationship with."

The Charity Commission’s online register also allows donors to search for charities operating within their own local authority area, or to undertake keyword searches to find charities providing specific services, such as food banks or support for older people.

The initiative has been supported by the UK's Al Rayan Bank which has shared the advice with its customers.

"Most fundraising is genuine, but some fraudsters and online criminals will try to exploit Muslims' generosity at Ramadan," said Maisam Fazal, chief commercial officer at Al Rayan Bank.

"Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam, and so we want to encourage people to be safe with their donating.

"We urge people to read through our ‘Avoid Ramadan Scams’ guide, to help ensure donations end up in the right hands and help those in need.”