As the death toll following last week’s massive earthquake in Turkey and Syria tragically continues to climb, the response to the UK’s Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal has been overwhelming.

However, unscrupulous cybercriminals will already be exploiting the situation with online scams and malware related to the appeal – taking advantage of people’s genuine good nature.

Get Safe Online are anticipating a flood of fraudulent emails, social media posts and websites pleading for donations for relief efforts or claiming to have ‘exclusive’ video of the disaster area.

The Nepalese earthquake, Pakistan floods and hurricanes Katrina and Rita were just three examples from many where this has been the case, as has, more recently, the war in Ukraine.

How you can help, with secure donations

You can help people affected by the crisis by donating and helping to raise money for the DEC appeal by visiting the official DEC Turkey-Syria Earthquake Appeal page: https://donation.dec.org.uk/turkey-syria-earthquake-appeal.

Make sure you type or paste in the address above to ensure you are on the correct, official site, as fraudsters have elaborate ways to deceive victims into visiting their fraudulent sites.

For more information on donating to charities safely, visit the Get Safe Online website.