After the earthquake disaster we experienced in our country, aid donations from all over the world were made and continue to be made in order to be with our earthquake victims in these sad days. Unfortunately, fraudsters take advantage of this situation to commit cybercrime, and there is an increasing amount of fraudulent activities related to aid.

Most of the attacks are not new, cybercrime has also appeared in many events we have experienced in the past, such as pandemics or in many events that people have done for unity.

What can we pay attention to in order not to be exposed to fraud in our charity donations?

• First of all, you can check for malicious links from USOM's National Cyber Incident Response Center - USOM link.
• The fake website may look exactly like the site of a real charity, but the information to which donations will be sent may have been changed. It is important to be cautious.
• Often in these situations we can come across highly emotional expressions and notions of urgency, which can be part of a social engineering attack. You should be careful not to donate without researching the institution and person.
• Knowing your e-mail and contact information does not mean that the organizations requesting help are genuine.
• Whether the site has an SSL certificate may also be one of the criteria we need to check.
• You can search charities in a recognized database. 
• Generally, there is no supplement in legal aid organizations. Do not open and delete attachments from emails with attachments you suspect.
• Be careful in the use of social media, in our age, the attackers primarily use social media information in fraudulent activities that have become highly professional. 

If you believe that you have been exposed to a fraud after confirming these items, you can report it at USOM's National Cyber Incident Response Center - USOM.