Yesterday our office warned you to be on guard against scammers as you donate to aid the horrific disaster in Haiti. Today, our IT department alerted us to the fact that spammers are already sending out scam e-mails requesting donations to send to Haiti – and these messages are convincing!  

Here’s an example of the type of spam you may be getting in your inbox:

The best practice, our Charities Manager tells us, is to donate directly to the charitable organizations that are properly registered and helping the cause. If the group is soliciting funds in Washington,  it must be registered with our office. It only takes a few seconds to check online at http://www.sos.wa.gov/charities/search.aspx .