Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud Alert

Washington D.C.
FBI National Press Office
(202) 324-3691

Haitian Earthquake Relief Fraud Alert

The FBI today reminds Internet users who receive appeals to donate money in the aftermath of Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti to apply a critical eye and do their due diligence before responding to those requests. Past tragedies and natural disasters have prompted individuals with criminal intent to solicit contributions purportedly for a charitable organization and/or a good cause.

Therefore, before making a donation of any kind, consumers should adhere to certain guidelines, to include the following:
Do not respond to any unsolicited (spam) incoming e-mails, including clicking links contained within those messages.
Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as surviving victims or officials asking for donations via e-mail or social networking sites.
Verify the legitimacy of nonprofit organizations by utilizing various Internet-based resources that may assist in confirming the group’s existence and its nonprofit status rather than following a purported link to the site.
Be cautious of e-mails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files because the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
Make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes.
Do not give your personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: Providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.

Anyone who has received an e-mail referencing the above information or anyone who may have been a victim of this or a similar incident should notify the IC3 via www.ic3.gov.

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Missing Children

Haleigh Cummings

Code Amber News Service (CANS) issued this Missing Endangered person Alert after the girl disappeared from her bedroom some time after 3 AM Tuesday morning in Satsuma. Satsuma is approximately 75 miles east of Gainsville.

Haleigh Cummings a white female, 3 feet tall, weighs 39 pounds and has blond hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a pink shirt and underwear.

There are no suspects in this case at this time. However, due to the circumstances of the child's disappearance an abduction is strongly suspected.

There is no suspect vehicle at this time.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Putnam County Sheriff's office at (386) 329-0808 or dial 911.

Download free video of missing Florida child Haleigh Cummings

Email this alert to a friend in the area.

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