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6/30/2010

Lexington, KY - The BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico continues to cause problems and has sparked many efforts to clean up the shoreline, save wildlife and try to help local residents. Of course scams have popped up in the wake of this disaster, and your Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission are warning everyone how to steer clear of them.

For example, charitable organizations are working to save wildlife and the environment affected by the spill. If you are solicited to donate, check out the organization to make sure they are legitimate.

Your BBB has a Wise Giving Alliance which evaluates charities. You can access this information at www.give.org. Watch out for well-meaning but brand new groups that may have popped up that don't have the experience or knowledge of how to effectively help with this disaster, which has very specialized problems. Beware of anyone asking for money who is vague or evasive about how your money will help. Watch out for unsolicited emails or pleas on social networking sites…give directly to the charity you are interested in helping.

There are also reports of job scams related to the Gulf Oil spill cleanup. In Washington State, the Yakama Indian reservation was hit by a man promising high paying Gulf clean up jobs and took personal information like Social Security numbers from excited applicants…but the promised bus to take them there never showed up.

Beware of any sudden job offers to help in the Gulf that want an upfront fee. Check out job offers carefully first. Disasters cause us all to want to help if we can…but if you get any suspicious offers or solicitations like these, don't fall for it!

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Be a "Don’t Fall for It!" informant! If you have something to share you believe may be a fraudulent offer or scam, please let the BBB know! Call us at (859) 259-1008 or toll-free, 1-800-866-6668, or email us at info@lexbbb.com.