The Season of Giving Is Also the Season of Scam
How to Spot Fake Fundraisers Before They Become a Security Incident
Every December, charitable giving increases and so does cybercrime.
Donation requests surge across inboxes, social platforms, and messaging apps. Employees want to help. Leaders want their businesses to give back. Emotions are high, scrutiny is low, and scammers know exactly when to strike.
Fake fundraisers don’t just steal money.
They compromise trust, expose systems, and create real brand risk.
We see this pattern every year and we treat donation scams for what they truly are: social engineering attacks wearing a charitable disguise.
Why Businesses Are Prime Targets During the Holidays
Scammers don’t target generosity.
They target decision speed.
Small and mid-sized businesses are especially vulnerable because:
Donation decisions are often made quickly and informally
Requests may come through social media, email, or internal Slack messages
Employees feel social pressure to “do the right thing”
Verification steps are skipped to avoid appearing insensitive
Once a business engages, even with a small donation, it signals legitimacy. That opens the door to follow-up phishing attempts, impersonation, and payment fraud.
This is rarely a one-and-done attack.
Why Fake Fundraisers Are a Cybersecurity Problem (Not a Charity Problem)
The techniques behind donation scams are the same ones used in:
Phishing emails
Business Email Compromise (BEC)
Invoice and wire fraud
Executive impersonation attacks
The only difference is the wrapper.
Urgency. Authority. Emotional manipulation.
These are human-layer vulnerabilities, not technical ones.
That’s why traditional security tools don’t stop these attacks—and why awareness alone isn’t enough.
The Octellient Framework: How to Spot Fakes Before Damage Is Done
Octellient.ai helps teams recognize social engineering before it escalates into a security incident. Our approach is built around a simple, repeatable framework that applies to donation requests, emails, messages, and payment changes alike.
1. Source Clarity
Who is actually behind this request?
Is the organizer clearly identified?
Is there a verifiable connection to the cause?
Are you being routed through a third party you didn’t expect?
If ownership of the request isn’t obvious, that’s your first signal to pause.
2. Funds Transparency
Where exactly is the money going?
Legitimate organizations can explain:
How funds are collected
Who controls them
How they’ll be used
Vague stories, emotional narratives without specifics, or pressure to “just trust” are classic indicators of manipulation.
3. Channel Integrity
How did this request reach you?
High-risk indicators include:
Links shared via email, DMs, or social posts
Requests to move conversations off-platform
Donation pages without secure URLs (HTTPS)
Trusted causes don’t rely on shortcuts.
4. Pressure Detection
Are you being rushed?
Urgency is one of the most reliable social engineering signals.
Phrases like:
“We need this immediately”
“You’re the last one who can help”
“This can’t wait”
…are designed to override verification, not accelerate impact.
5. Post-Action Accountability
What happens after you donate?
Real organizations follow up.
They report impact.
They stay visible.
Scammers disappear.
No follow-up is often the final confirmation that something wasn’t right.
Protecting Your Brand While Giving Back
Smart businesses treat giving with the same discipline as security:
Establish internal guidelines for corporate donations
Train employees to recognize social engineering tactics
Donate only through official, verified channels
Verify causes before attaching your brand publicly
Review outcomes, not just intentions
Generosity should strengthen your reputation, not expose it.
Final Thought: Security Starts Before the Click
Fake fundraisers succeed for the same reason most cyber incidents do:
good people acting in good faith, without the right guardrails.
At Octellient, we focus on building those guardrails helping teams recognize manipulation early, respond confidently, and prevent damage before it starts.
Because the best security outcome isn’t recovery.
It’s prevention.
