The Money Fit Show · Season 1, Episode 29
Scams, Disasters, Pandemics, and Puppies
Disasters and emergencies often bring out generosity, but they can also create opportunities for scammers. Rebecca Barr returns to The Money Fit Show to discuss fraudulent donation requests, crowdfunding, pandemic-related schemes, puppy scams, and how consumers can slow down and verify a request before sending money.
Giving carefully when emotions are running high
Play Season 1, Episode 29 directly through Spotify without leaving Money Fit.
Scammers can take advantage of the same emotions that motivate people to help
Rebecca Barr and Todd Christensen discuss how emergencies, natural disasters, health crises, and other highly visible events can create an environment where people want to act quickly. That urgency can also make fraudulent requests harder to recognize.
A scammer may impersonate a charity, create a misleading crowdfunding campaign, sell products tied to a crisis, or use an emotional story to encourage someone to send money before verifying who is behind the request.
The episode also examines puppy scams, which became especially visible during the COVID-19 period as more people searched online for pets. The same basic lesson applies across many scam types: separate the emotional decision from the payment decision long enough to research who you are dealing with.
Topics covered in this episode
- How pandemic-related scams compared with familiar fraud tactics already used before COVID-19.
- Scammers selling products connected to a crisis, emergency, health concern, or other timely event.
- How crowdfunding can make it easier to raise legitimate help quickly while also creating opportunities for fraudulent or misleading appeals.
- Giving with greater confidence by researching the organization, fundraiser, or person requesting money before making a payment.
- Steps consumers can consider when they believe money may have been sent to a fraudulent fundraiser or scam.
- Puppy scams and other pet-related schemes that use photographs, emotional stories, deposits, shipping fees, or other charges to obtain money for an animal that may not exist.
Pause before turning compassion into a payment
Wanting to help quickly is understandable, especially after a disaster or personal tragedy. Before sending money, independently search for the organization or fundraiser, confirm where the payment is going, look for established contact information, and avoid relying only on the link or story that first reached you.
Research before sending money
BBB continues to publish scam alerts and maintain tools for researching and reporting suspected scams. BBB Wise Giving Alliance also provides charity reports and donor guidance through Give.org.
Rebecca Barr
Rebecca Barr returned to The Money Fit Show after her earlier Season 1 discussion about scam and fraud warning signs. At the time of this episode, she served as PR and Communications Manager with the Better Business Bureau of Great West + Pacific.
This conversation focuses on how familiar scam techniques can be adapted to disasters, public emergencies, crowdfunding, charitable giving, and pet purchases when consumers may be especially motivated to act quickly.
