Here’s how Arizonans can donate to Harvey victims and avoid scams

PHOENIX — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich warned Arizonans who are looking to donate money for victims of Hurricane Harvey to watch out for various charity scams.

The scams include fake Facebook pages and scam charity websites, Brnovich said in a press release on Monday.

“Low-life cyber scum are exploiting this disaster using fake social media accounts,” Brnovich said. “When a natural disaster strikes, many of us ask, how can we help? Giving is good, but it’s important to donate to a legitimate charity that has experience helping victims quickly.”

Brnovich recommends that Arizonans looking to donate money to Hurricane Harvey victims should not donate through links in emails or texts, donate to charities you know and trust and never give out personal information over the phone.

Arizonans can also confirm the authenticity of charities through the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance, Charity Navigator, Charity Watch, or GuideStar.

Here are some more tips on how to choose the right organization to donate to after natural disasters, according to ProPublica.

KTAR News, Arizona Sports to host Harvey fundraiser

On Tuesday, KTAR News and Arizona Sports will host a joint fundraiser to raise money for hurricane victims.

Listeners can donate by clicking this link to make a donation to the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster. The money will go to helping FEMA-related agencies, including the American Red Cross.

Related: Arizona rescue officials sent to Texas to help with Harvey

Listeners can also help spread awareness about the fundraiser on social media using hashtags #HopeForHouston and #HoustonStrong.

If you can’t remember the link, you can text the word HOPE to either 411-923 or 620-620. We’ll respond with a link to the donation page so you can make a difference.

Other organizations to help Harvey victims

In addition, the Red Cross is taking donations online — but that is not the only organization that needs your help.

Here are just a handful of the national or Texas-based organizations working hard to rescue the thousands of people who are stranded from Hurricane Harvey.

• Salvation Army

• Samaritan’s Purse, an international relief organization

• Heart to Heart International

• Save The Children, which is helping victims with small children

• Global Giving, a crowdfunding website which is trying to raise $2 million for “emergency supplies like food, water, and medicine in addition to longer-term recovery assistance to help residents recover and rebuild.”

• GoFundMe, another crowdfunding website that is hosting dozens of campaigns to help individual victims get emergency supplies and food

• The Dallas Animal Services and the SPCA of Texas are both offering aid to displaced pets

• Texas Diaper Bank, which is also helping victims who have small children

• Houston Food Bank

• North American Mission Board, which works with local churches to help provide food, shelter and other forms of aid

• Houston Flood Relief Fund on YouCaring, an online crowdfunding campaign started by Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt

• The Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation, which is donating proceeds from its 50/50 raffle “to various relief efforts for the damage throughout the state of Texas” through Thursday

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