World NGO Day: How to verify fake NGO to avoid falling for the scam, your money is for needy not greedy

World NGO day 2023: Non governmental organizations play a great role in society especially when it comes to contributing for social causes. Every year February 27 is celebrated as the World NGO day, the day focuses on strengthening the bond between public sectors and non governmental organizations in addition to encouraging people to join this sector. However many times people take the opportunity to play bad under this name. As much as the NGO culture needs boosts, it is equally important for people to understand the verification process to find whether the NGO is true to its name or fake. Before falling prey to these scammers here is how you can verify the NGO.

How to verify fake NGO before falling for the scam

Fake NGO’s these days are on the rise, and the worst part is that people are easily fooled by them. In order to verify the authenticity of these NGO’s you need to spend some time researching and noting down some of the process. Since this day celebrates and honors the effort made by these Non Govt. organizations it's our duty to support the right one.

The online presence matters

If you are good at browsing the first thing you need to check is the background and the online presence of the organization. You can visit the organization's website and social media accounts and consider looking into the type of activity the NGO is engaged in. This will give you a better clarity about your next step. 

Read reviews

Don’t just go by the website and data shown in there without a detailed version of the same. Check google reviews and try posting your concern there itself in order to receive correct information and genuine experience from the donors and people associated with the organization.

Connect and query

It's better to connect with the NGO on the personal level, rather than believing the websites. Sometimes these small NGOs don’t have much resources to maintain the website and thus can provide you with very little information which might confuse you. It's good to call them directly and resolve all your queries. While doing so make sure to ask whether they are willing to give you a receipt for the same, if not then that’s a Red flag.

Proof of registration 

Almost all the NGO working on a big scale relief fund are registered under the government act. In India you can find most of the NGO’s being registered under Societies registration act 1860. You can ask the NGO to show you their Proof of registration before going ahead with the deal.

NGO watchdogs

There are various third parties which keep an eye on the reliability of these NGO’s. You can consider checking through one and cross verify the same. Visit the government run website DARPAN which keeps the track of most of the NGO’s in India.

Method of payment

Method of payment also plays an important part in recognising the transparency level of the organization. Specially when the receiving party is asking for cash donations its ‘Sus’. Avoid cash transactions and opt for a reliable online payment and if possible directly visit the organization. Make sure your money is reaching the needy and not the greedy.

Tax & annual chart

Most of the time the registered NGO provides you with a tax free donation option. You can also opt to check their annual reports to ensure where the money is going and whether they are actually hitting their targets.