#donation scam updates

[mangocheesecakes]

Hey, I just got an ask from @/almostoptimisticsheep asking for donations to support their family in Gaza. The linktree link on their pinned post that takes you to a paypal donation page for Jeff Owino. I saw one of your posts mentioning his name as a scammer and thought I'd bring it to your attention ASAP. The account was only created a day ago and is seemingly asking for $700 in donations.

Thank you v much for this info. Yes, this one's a scammer. Jeff Owino is a known scam paypal account. They are also listed in Key's list of active scammers pretending to be from Palestine here. Please block and warn your friends and followers. Instead of their scam post, please consider boosting and donating to a legit fundraiser that's been vetted by other Palestinians:

Yousef and Mohamed Moner's fundraisers which are currently v low on funds and has little to no traction

Madleen Abu Jayyab's fundraiser to help especially her son Mohammed who's eye was injured from a rocket shrapnel

Or you can choose any one from @/el-shab-hussein's rotating list of priority fundraisers here

(Edit: scammer is now at @/severepandacomputer)

[12percentspider]

MELLOWBIRDCREATOR IS A FRAUD

The header is stolen from Alessandra Olivero, who is a patient with cystic fibrosis.

The campaign seems to have been put on hold, likely due to this scammer having stolen from it.

The scammer has blocked everyone who has called them out, and has made zero attempt to clarify what is going on. They have been doing this under multiple names and accounts, as well as having made multiple paypal accounts that have been terminated- likely for fraud.

Here's some past accounts and scam attempts, including lying about being homeless and needing money for shelter:

[spacerockband]

Hello, I'm from Gaza City because of the war,my house was destroyed. We lost everything,my family and I did not have anything left. We left our homes in search of a safe place and we were displaced three  times to different places to survive, but unfortunately there's no safe place in Gaza. My mother is very sick and she's a kidney failure patient in need of treatment outside. She suffers from LS. Help me and my family to survive. Please, your small donation can make a huge difference. A friend outside Gaza has come in to help me run the donation program so that my mother can be evacuated. My friend Mr. Fred Odhiambo is receiving the donations on our behalf to help us organise how to evaluate Gaza in the next four days

shame on you for running a scam exploiting people wanting to help when there are real refugees and families who need that money and that help right now. it is beyond evil to use a real genocide to fund your own paypal scheme.

here is a list of real places to donate to palestine

[prettyboythings-blog]

Hello, am really sorry for sending you private message concerning my request in the ongoing situation in Rafa. The continuous bombardment and the ongoing genocide pose a significant threat to their well-being. What pains me even more is that due to the lack of medications in Gaza, my Mom, who is a type 2 Diabetis patiant and was scheduled for an urgent eye surgery, have had no access to insulin or any medical care for the past 3 months. Some of my family members sought refuge in the southernmost part of Gaza (Rafah) in tents. However, my parents, and sisters have no alternative place to stay, forced to remain in the Nusierat refugee camp, which is now the subject of continuous severe bombardment since christmas started.” Am on my knees requesting for your donations. Please help where possible.

This is a scam send donations to real donation organization it will be appreciated. <3

[gibbearish]

theres a kickstarter i backed back in march 2021 thats been going through issue after issue during the production process but has been keeping backers updated the whole time and a couple months ago they announced they were finally able to start shipping orders im excited

[fiercynn]

on ao3's current fundraiser

apparently it’s time for ao3’s biannual donation drive, which means it’s time for me to remind you all, that regardless of how much you love ao3, you shouldn’t donate to them because they HAVE TOO MUCH MONEY AND NO IDEA WHAT TO DO WITH IT.

we’ve known for years that ao3 – or, more specifically, the organization for transformative works (@transformativeworks on tumblr), or otw, who runs ao3 and other fandom projects – has a lot of money in their “reserves” that they had no plans for. but in 2023, @manogirl and i did some research on this, and now, after looking at their more recent financial statements, i’ve determined that at the beginning of 2024, they had almost $2.8 MILLION US DOLLARS IN SURPLUS.

our full post last year goes over the principles of how we determined this, even though the numbers are for 2023, but the key points still stand (with the updated numbers):

when we say “surplus”, we are not including money that they estimate they need to spend in 2024 for their regular expenses. just the extra that they have no plan for

yes, nonprofits do need to keep some money in reserves for emergencies; typically, nonprofits registered in the u.s. tend to keep enough to cover between six months and two years of their regular operating expenses (meaning, the rough amount they need each month to keep their services going). $2.8 million USD is enough to keep otw running for almost FIVE YEARS WITHOUT NEW DONATIONS

they always overshoot their fundraisers: as i’m posting this, they’ve already raised $104,751.62 USD from their current donation drive, which is over double what they’ve asked for! on day two of the fundraiser!!

no, we are not trying to claim they are embezzling this money or that it is a scam. we believe they are just super incompetent with their money. case in point: that surplus that they have? only earned them $146 USD in interest in 2022, because only about $10,000 USD of their money invested in an interest-bearing account. that’s the interest they earn off of MILLIONS. at the very least they should be using this extra money to generate new revenue – which would also help with their long-term financial security – but they can’t even do that

no, they do not need this money to use if they are sued. you can read more about this in the full post, but essentially, they get most of their legal services donated, and they have not, themselves, said this money is for that purpose

i'm not going to go through my process for determining the updated 2024 numbers because i want to get this post out quickly, and otw actually had not updated the sources i needed to get these numbers until the last couple days (seriously, i've been checking), but you can easily recreate the process that @manogirl and i outlined last year with these documents:

otw’s 2022 audited financial statement, to determine how much money they had at the end of 2022

otw’s 2024 budget spreadsheet, to determine their net income in 2023 and how much they transferred to and from reserves at the beginning of 2024

otw’s 2022 form 990 (also available on propublica), which is a tax document, and shows how much interest they earned in 2022 (search “interest” and you’ll find it in several places)  

also, otw has not been accountable to answering questions about their surplus. typically, they hold a public meeting with their finance committee every year in september or october so people can ask questions directly to their treasurer and other committee members; as you can imagine, after doing this deep dive last summer, i was looking forward to getting some answers at that meeting!

but they cancelled that meeting in 2023, and instead asked people to write to the finance committee through their contact us form online. fun fact: i wrote a one-line message to the finance committee on may 11, 2023 through that form, when @manogirl and i were doing this research, asking them for clarification on how much they have in their reserves. i have still not received a response.

so yeah. please spend your money on people who actually need it, like on mutual aid requests! anyone who wants to share their mutual aid requests, please do so in the replies and i’ll share them out – i didn’t want to link directly to individual requests without permission in case this leads to anyone getting harassed, but i would love to share your requests. to start with, here's operation olive branch and their ongoing spreadsheet sharing palestinian folks who need money to escape genocide.

oh, and if you want to write to otw and tell them why you are not donating, i'm not sure it’ll get any results, but it can’t hurt lol. here's their contact us form – just don’t expect a response! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[transformativeworks]

OTW Website and Donation Form Are Down

18:30 UTC on July 11, 2023

As of now AO3 is back up. However, in the past hour the OTW website and the donation platform have become inaccessible. We believe it is part of the same attack first made on the Archive. We will be providing updates via this account.

We also want to alert fans that on Twitter someone is using the name AO3_Status_ (note the second underscore). If you are on Twitter, please block and report this account. 

The fake account is impersonating our service status account and attempting to scam AO3 users out of money. Fans on all platforms should be wary of anyone soliciting money on behalf of the OTW or its projects at this time. (The real donation form is currently down due to a DDoS.)

Open Doors and Legal Advocacy pages are also not available at this time. Our Fanlore project is being worked on and should be back today.  Our Transformative Works and Cultures site has not been affected. Thank you for being patient while we restore services!

[kyra45]

“This is a longshot, would you be willing to help me get my insulin? I'm down to my last pen and its pretty much close to being empty.Nt asking for much only need $370 rn to save my bloodsugar. please help me with a small donation or share any help can save my life. Please help & Blessings ❤️ Thanks.”

vero-og -> verro-og -> verro—og -> vero—-og -> verroh-ogy -> verroo-ogg -> vrro-org -> verrohh-ogg -> vero-1og -> vvero-org0 -> v1993-g -> vvg-vero -> verina-og -> verinna-org -> vero-og-1 -> ver-0g -> ver0-0g -> ver0-0rg -> verr0-0g -> verr0-og -> verro-0g -> ver-0gg -> vero-0og -> verr0-0gg -> verina-g -> vern-og -> veero-og -> vvero-gg

maryotieno

This scammer has already made tons of money running this insulin scam please don’t donate to them they are lying and stealing and block people who ask for refunds. Report them if you see them and this list updates based on every account they’ve been under. Please pay attention to the style or url they’ve used to know how easy it is to spot their a scammer.

[walks-the-ages]

Gaia Thomas G0fundme Scam Update - 3/05/2024 (March 5th, 2024) !

As of 8 hours previously of the creation of this post on March 5th, 2024, Gaia Thomas posted updates on three of the G0fundmes that she had organized, announcing her bank had caught a scam, which is (supposedly) , why she had halted donations on various g0fundmes, and withdrawn thousands and thousands of dollars from the g0fundmes in question:

Dear donors, I was the victim of an online scam. My credit union caught the scam. In the interests of donor safety, I blocked donations at that time. The evidence is in the hands of the Alameda Police Department. Please be aware that this could happen to you. All funds have been repaid in the form of donations to the original fundraiser as requested by the GoFundMe team. I have asked G0FundMe to return the funds to the hands of the original donors. Sincerely, Gaia Thomas

Attatched to the 3/5/2024 update was the following screenshot:

[ID begins: A screenshot from an email, from G0FundMe Trust and Safety team that reads: Hello Helen, Thank you for letting us know. We want to make this process as easy as possible, due to the circumstance, so we can refund donors and close the fundraisers. Can you let me know when you will be able to return the withdrawn amounts? Before we issue refunds, we can help you post an update to donors so they are aware of why they are being refunded. You can donate the withdrawn amounts so we can refund all donors for all three fundraisers: Donate $17,978 to return to the withdrawn amount to this fundraiser using this link [ https://www.gofundme.com/f/hope-in-the-crisis-aid-for-mai-and-her-family/donate ] Donate $5,108 to return the withdrawn amount to this fundraiser using this link [ https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-the-life-of-kareem/donate ] Donate $96.50 to return the withdrawn amount to this fundraiser using this link: [ https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-a-family-rebuild-fundraiser-for-noor-eleyan/donate ] Please let me know once those funds have been returned so we can begin refunding donors I'll keep an eye out for your reply Mateo Gofundme trust & safety team End ID]

So, from the screenshot of an email she provided, it looks like the fundraisers for Maia, Kareem, and Noor are going to be closed, and all donations are going to be refunded to the original donors??

Gaia Thomas was also forced to return the amounts she had withdrawn from each fundraiser:

[ID: Three images, each showing the Gofundme fundraisers for Mai, Kareem, and Noor, in that order. Mai's fundraiser is at $38,301 out of the $35,000 goal, with Gaia Thompson having donated back $17,968 seven hours ago. Kareem's fundraiser is at $10,848 out of the $15,000 goal, with Gaia Thomas having donated back $5,108 seven hours ago. Noor's fundraiser is at $197 out of the $25,000 goal, with Gaia Thomas having donated back $97 eight hours ago. End ID]

so It looks like the publish backlash has at least worked a little bit, Gaia Thomas is not getting away with thousands of dollars in fraud, BUT, Mai, Kareem, and Noor's fundraisers are all being shutdown by Gofundme, assumedly because Gaia claimed she'd been ~scammed~ as her excuse for withdrawing thousands of dollars in donations.

Is *anyone* in any kind of direct contact with Mai, Kareem, or Noor, so someone who is actually trustworthy can set up new fundraisers so we can immediately get the word out, once the g0fundmes close and people start getting their refunds??

Until we know more, here's the direct links to the existing fundraisers organized by Gaia, so we can keep track of what her 'explanation' of a 'scam' is.

Remember, do not donate to these links until we know more, the fundraisers might be closed completely with full refunds, or she might try something else to keep the funds to herself:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/hope-in-the-crisis-aid-for-mai-and-her-family

https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-the-life-of-kareem

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-a-family-rebuild-fundraiser-for-noor-eleyan

[isatforpalestine]

In Stars and Time for Palestine

Requests: Open! | Goal: $400/750

(To sign up to volunteer, please fill out this form or DM this account/@siffrin-enthusiast! Whichever is easiest for you!)

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!

Rules

We ask that receipts/proof of purchase be included with the request to help keep track of things.

To sign up as a volunteer, please fill out this form or DM this account and or @siffrin-enthusiast! Whatever works for you!

You will receive confirmation that your request has been received and when work has started.

You can ask for updates on your request, but please remember that artists are human and have busy lives.

Shipping requests and requests for multiple characters or specific poses are allowed, but may be less detailed and take longer than asking for a single character.

NSFW and gore requests are not allowed.

If an artist asks for credit, you must give credit.

Please do not send donation requests in our asks as unfortunately this is a common way to scam donations.

Charities

Donations can be made to any of the following reputable charities:

Palestinian GoFundMe Masterpost, regularly updated

Palestinian Evacuation Fundraiser Masterpost, regularly updated

Palestinian Children's Relief Fund

Care For Gaza

eSims For Gaza

Diabetics in Palestine

Medical Aid for Palestinians

UNICEF

Doctors Without Borders

Due to GoFundMe's giving money to Palestinians directly and immediately, donations to them are highly encouraged and requests made through GoFundMe donations will be given preferential treatment (assigned and completed first). Donations to charities are still of course open, encouraged, and accepted, but if possible please consider donating to a GoFundMe!

Prices

Prices have not been set in stone yet, as I'm waiting on feedback and sign-ups from other artists, but they're around here!

$1-9 = Sketch/doodle.

$10-14 = Lineart, uncolored.

$15-20 = Colored sketch.

$21-30 = Flat shading.

$31-44 = Detailed shading.

$45-59 = Rendering and a simple background free of charge.

$60+ = Rendering and a colorful background free of charge.

$99+ = Collab piece with multiple artists with the artist selection free of charge.

Additions to add on to the original price (unless it's included in the price, i.e., if you spent $45-59 you would not have to pay for a simple background). Please note that these will almost always increase the time it takes for your request to be completed.

$5 for a simple background.

$5 for another character sketch or uncolored lineart.

$10 for a detailed background.

$10 for very complex poses.

$15 for another character in flat shading or colored sketches, with $10 each for any additional characters.

$20 to select the artist of your request. Note that if they're busy with other requests, this will take longer than letting us choose.

$25 for another character in detailed shading and above, with $20 each for any additional characters.

$30 for another character with rendering, with $25 each for any additional characters.

Artists

Meet our volunteer artists!!

@outeremissary can make doodles, uncolored linearts and colored sketches!

@pied-piper-pluto can do everything on the list, from doodles to rendering with complex poses, multiple characters, and colorful backgrounds! he can do digital or traditional medium, or watercolor for large donations!

@siffrin-enthusiast can draw sketches, doodles, flat/detailed shading or take other requests/make edits, but doesn't know how to render. i'll give it an honest shot if you want though!

@moopermoment can do everything except detailed shading, rendering, and complex poses!

@kadethecat does sketches to flat shading and enjoys collab pieces!

@benjibots can do sketches as well as flat shading!

@kensiesss who can do anything except for complex poses!

@forgetful-storyteller can make anything from sketches to rendering with a simple background, but might take a bit to finish complicated pieces due to a busy schedule!

@tekabecca114 can do b/w comic panel style images!

@agriocnemis does everything on the list!!

@novelist-on-strike can make simple custom logos/graphics!

@mnemonicmew does everything except for collab pieces and colorful rendered backgrounds!

(To sign up to volunteer, please fill out this form or DM this account/@siffrin-enthusiast!)

Transparency

We do not handle any of the money donated to ensure that 100% goes to Palestine as soon as it physically can. Please blur out any and all personal information in your screenshots while submitting your receipts.

[tuherrus]

don’t support kinodraws

i never do this kind of thing but i’m so incredibly frustrated at this happening and this person still updating their profiles, including the one they have on tumblr, as if nothing happened (save for twitter since it’s one of the few places this is being actively talked about)

don’t support @kinodraws​ if you don’t want someone with a long history of scamming people to pocket your money!

to summarize this current situation:

they organized an ofmd zine, releasing a copy with missing/wrong credits, missing artists etc while the earnings of this zine were promised to go to charity. the charity has now confirmed there was no donation made on the date or amount they claimed to have made, kino has deleted all of the zine’s profiles and pages, fabricated having donated $1300+ to the charity (we have no receipts of how much the zine actually made so this amount is possibly made up as well) and after promising to fix the zine itself is now ignoring the situation completely

the current situation is better told by people involved and i’ll include a couple threads

here

here

here’s the charity’s response about the donation

they also have a page on artists beware here regarding a past commission scam

it appears they’ve done this in multiple fandoms with multiple names before so i doubt they’ll stop as long as they keep getting away with this

all this said don’t go harrass kino or be an idiot, i wanted to make this post bc stealing, lying about it and expecting to let the situation die down as they move on is something i don’t want to happen again since it seems like that’s happened one too many times already. if you want to work with kino or commission them, please reconsider!

[mangocheesecakes]

Everyone please block and report tumblr user @/rescueplease, they are a filthy scammer

their most recent posts have been copied word-for-word from two different sources:

judging from their syntax and typing style in their more original posts, I have a very strong suspicion that this is another one of Laura Deramas' scams. They also use Zelle for their money-transfer account, which a lot of past Laura scams have used.

they don't seem to have made an actual fundraising post, probably because they know that they would instantly be found out now that everyone is on high alert against scammers pretending to be Palestinian, but i suspect they have been messaging people directly so as to avoid detection.

If you have been contacted by this blog, please do not donate to them. Block and report.

Edited to add: if this blog sent you a dm and gave you their paypal and zelle links privately, please do post them publicly so we can track the accounts they are using

[12percentspider]

If this is true, they should be in the ER right now: Scam Updates

I suspect it's become too widely known that insulin pens have a price cap in the US that is way less than $350. Hence this scammer decided they need a pump.

However, they've also decided that they have symptoms of an infection. The thing is, if you have an infection and you're diabetic, you're not sitting around waiting for a pump. You're calling your healthcare provider and arranging with your pharmacy for one of the beforementioned insulin pens, which as said before, have a price cap way less than $350. Diabetes is an immune system and endocrine system disorder. As in if you have an infection and it's already giving you a fever and high blood pressure, you're already doing really badly at that point and just insulin is NOT going to take that away.

You also can survive without a pump by using insulin injection pens. If it was imperative that you have a pump to survive period, I would not be here. End of. But guess what? Insulin pumps are in fact expensive, and most people are only going to see that and go "oh yeah sure I'll donate".

Fuck this scamming bastard. If you've donated, call your bank immediately.

[my-silly-poker]

insulin scam warning

Hey gamers,

for a long time on tumblr there's been a guy who really, really wants you to believe they need insulin, on many different blogs, with different paypals and different names. They make a new blog, put a few reblogs on it so it isn't obvious it's brand-new, and then start spamming asks to people for donations.

Here is their most recent blog, but their username will likely change by the time you see this. Kyra45 reports updates on them here

Here are examples of past iterations of this scam, which have been taken down

Donation scams on tumblr are extremely common and anyone who has a tumblr account will encounter them at some point. The insulin guy has been a long-running one for months now. Scambusting blogs like kyra45 do a lot of work to track and call out these scams when they surface.

Scam Spotting Tips

They send an ask often accompanied with a follow despite having never interacted with you before. Ask yourself: How did you find your blog? These interactions usually come out of nowhere when you have no original posts or interests they could've found you through, because they're just going down the lists of random blogs.

They reblog just enough posts to make you think that their blog is in-use when it is actually only a day or a few old. Enable timestamps and try find the blog's oldest post; if a blog seems old but still seems suspicious, be wary of post backdating

They often disable or delete comments on their donation post to hide comments that call them out. Open the notes and see if it says "some replies have been hidden, blocked or removed." Blocked/hidden comments sometimes still appear in reblogs of a post but not the original, so open a random reblog and see if telling comments appear there.

It isn't unusual for the story and the ask to either be exact copy-pastes of each other, or otherwise have very telling suspicious details, such as: using different names, having different goal amounts, contrasting story details, etc.

Like many of the above examples, they often have a completely random string of words as their blog name.

Reverse image searching can be a helpful giveaway if it works, but don't trust it - scammers often steal images from private Facebook groups/profiles so people don't find the source and think it's original

When you receive an ask from a blog like this, reporting them for spam or phishing and reporting the PayPal account for fraudulent activity does help get these accounts taken down.

[bitchesgetriches]

{ MASTERPOST } Everything You Need to Know about Saving Money and Being Frugal

We’re all in this together. Don’t give up.

On food and groceries:

How to Shop for Groceries like a Boss

Why Name Brand Products Are Beneath You: The Honor and Glory of Buying Generic

If You Don’t Eat Leftovers I Don’t Even Want to Know You

You Are above Bottled Water, You Elegant Land Mermaid

You Should Learn To Cook. Here’s Why.

On entertainment and socializing:

The Frugal Introvert’s Guide to the Weekend

7 Totally Reasonable Ways To Save Money on Cheap Entertainment 

Take Pride in Being a Cheap Date

The Library Is a Magical Place and You Should Fucking Go There

Your Library Lets You Stream Audiobooks and eBooks FOR FREEEEEEE!

What’s the Effect of Social Media on Your Finances?

You Won’t Regret Your Frugal 20s

On health:

How to Pay Hospital Bills When You’re Flat Broke

Run With Me if You Want to Save: How Exercising Will Save You Money

Our Master List of 100% Free Mental Health Self-Care Tactics

Why You Probably Don’t Need That Gym Membership

How to Get DIRT CHEAP Pet Medication, Without a Prescription 

On other big expenses:

Businesses Will Happily Give You HUGE Discounts if You Ask This Magic Question

Understand the Hidden Costs of Travel and Avoid Them Like the Plague

Other People’s Weddings Don’t Have to Make You Broke

You Deserve Cheap, Fake Jewelry… Just Like Coco Chanel

3 Times I Was Damn Grateful for My Emergency Fund (and Side Income) 

When (and How) to Try Refinancing or Consolidating Student Loans

The Real Story of How I Paid Off My Mortgage Early in 4 Years 

Season 2, Episode 2: “I’m Not Ready to Buy a House—But How Do I *Get Ready* to Get Ready?”

The Most Impactful Financial Decision I’ve Ever Made… and Why I Don’t Recommend It

On buying secondhand and trading:

Almost Everything Can Be Purchased Secondhand

I Am a Craigslist Samurai and so Can You: How to Sell Used Stuff Online

The Delicate Art of the Friend Trade

On giving gifts and charitable donations:

How Can I Tame My Family’s Crazy Gift-Giving Expectations?

In Defense of Shameless Regifting

Make Sure Your Donations Have the Biggest Impact by Ruthlessly Judging Charities

The Anti-Consumerist Gift Guide: I Have No Gift to Bring, Pa Rum Pa Pum Pum

How to Spot a Charitable Scam

Ask the Bitches: How Do I Say “No” When a Loved One Asks for Money… Again? 

On resisting temptation:

How to Insulate Yourself From Advertisements

Making Decisions Under Stress: The Siren Song of Chocolate Cake

The Magically Frugal Power of Patience

6 Proven Tactics for Avoiding Emotional Impulse Spending

On minimalism and buying less:

Don’t Spend Money on Shit You Don’t Like, Fool

Everything I Know About Minimalism I Learned from the Zombie Apocalypse

Slay Your Financial Vampires

The Subscription Box Craze and the Mindlessness of Wasteful Spending

On saving money:

How To Start Small by Saving Small

Not Every Savings Account Is Created Equal

The Unexpected Benefits (and Downsides) of Money Challenges

Budgets Don’t Work for Everyone—Try the Spending Tracker System Instead

From HYSAs to CDs, Here’s How to Level Up Your Financial Savings

Season 2, Episode 10: “Which Is Smarter: Getting a Loan? or Saving up to Pay Cash?”

The Magic of Unclaimed Property: How I Made $1,900 in 10 Minutes by Being a Disorganized Mess

We will periodically update this list with newer articles. And by “periodically” I mean “when we remember that it’s something we forgot to do for four months.”

Bitches Get Riches: setting realistic expectations since 2017!

Start saving right heckin’ now!

If you want to start small with your savings, consider signing up for an Acorns account! They round up your every purchase to the nearest dollar and save and invest the change for you. We like them so much we’ve generously allowed them to sponsor us with this affiliate link:

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[shadowfoxsilver]

Some quick tips to spotting accounts that are pretending to be a Palestinian needing mutual aid. Please keep in mind that not all of them are scam accounts, and that some may legitimate blogs who just aren’t too knowledgeable on how tumblr works. This guide is based around what I go by when checking certain blogs and usually it’s a quick giveaway the blog is a scam.

1. You was sent the ask as someone who regularly shares Palestine related content such as regular news updates of posts by other Palestinians who are regularly giving updates. You may also get these asks from sharing a popular post that is from the Palestine tag. If you post often about Palestine, you will always start getting these asks. These askers don’t care if you state don’t send the asks. They will anyway. Unfortunately minors also get sent asks.

2. The ask has odd formatting such as having odd quotation marks in it or unusual formatting that may indicate it’s been edited and copied from somewhere else. Often the ask is the same thing as the post itself minus a link to a donation site. These asks rarely change so searching it should pull up if it’s been sent to other bloggers.

3. The account is almost always a few days old or a week old or long depending on how often they have sent asks.

4. The blog has a few Palestine related posts or posts from random tags reblogged to pad out length and then no more. They will have no original posts besides the pinned post while occasionally answering asks that they may have received but otherwise nothing else and no further updates given either.

5. They may have a Linktree link that is called “GoFundMe” as if indicating they have a GoFundMe there. However, they don’t. When clicked on, the Linktree actually goes to a PayPal account whose name may not even match the one their supposed name is. They’ll say it’s a friend, but it’s just the same person not someone else. You’ll see this same name across multiple accounts after a while usually giving away it’s not legitimate even under a different theme.

6. The text used by the blogs are often real stories stolen from legitimate fundraisers and searching parts of it in your preferred search engine should pull up the sources. These sources make no mention of a tumblr account either or don’t have the PayPal account associated with them in the info. Scammers often impersonate a real person in need and will ignore you if you show them the source they copied from.

6. Legitimate Palestinians often link to their own GoFundMe posts that their friends have set up or post links to other social platforms they are found on. They will regularly post updates when possible, post sources to support them when necessary, and also generally have some method of verifying their legitimacy. They may often share links to support others as well or give links to charities that have been shown as reliable. They will have more original posts than just a single pinned one and regularly speak to other tumblr accounts beyond just an ask. Please don’t bother them with asks about possible scam accounts. There are many guides out there that can do that for you if you search.

7. Scammers don’t know anything about Palestine and will often have trouble once you ask them anything beyond the mutual aid post. They don’t know the languages decently and you can tell it pretty easily if you’re one who uses it regularly. Whatever the scammers use is often just copied off the site they got the post from.

8. These scammers can and will use names stolen off real Palestinians to look more legitimate and trustworthy. They change names constantly once one of their PayPal accounts is shut down.

Please don’t let these scams deter you from sending support where it needs to go. Even if you can’t donate personally, there are other ways to help. If you are sending money, please make sure that it’s going to where it’s needed and the place it’s sent has been verified accordingly. If you find a blog is a scammer, and have been able to prove it, please make sure to alert anyone sharing the post and report the account.