The Government blocks a website for donations to DANA victims due to signs of fraud

The page, in fact, was dedicated to making requests for fraudulent donations of financial aid, through the Bitcoin cryptocurrency, for those affected by DANA in the Valencian Community. Immediately, and in coordination with the State Security Forces, the blocking of the site has been formally activated so that the domain stops having activity on the Internet.

To expedite this process, Red.es, an entity attached to the Ministry for Digital Transformation, has requested the collaboration of the country’s main telecommunications operators to immediately block navigation to this website by its clients, with the objective to prevent access and to ensure that citizens do not become victims of this type of cybercrime. All of this has been carried out within the framework of the police investigation, which continues. ABC has been able to verify that, indeed, the website is no longer accessible.

The case of Ayudavalencia.es is not exceptional. During the last few days, scam attempts related to DANA have been carried out through all types of platforms. «We are monitoring them a lot. We knew about the case of ‘ayudavalencia.es’. We are also encountering many movements through social networks such as X, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Telegram and WhatsApp in which citizens are being asked for money to support those affected, when, in reality, they are requests made by criminals. », explains Josep Albors, head of research and awareness at the cybersecurity company ESET, in conversation with this newspaper.

«Scam cases increase greatly in cases of crisis in which emotion is on the surface. We have seen it with the war in Ukraine or with other nuclear catastrophes. Now, in addition, people are especially committed to those affected, so it is normal that the ‘bad guys’ are trying to take advantage,” points out Hervé Lambert, head of global operations at the cybersecurity company Panda Security.

Impersonating NGOs

Just a few days ago the Civil Guard was already alerting users about the development of this type of scam. In a message made through his official X account, he stressed that all donations that the society wants to make must be made through known official NGO accounts. To ensure, as we explained, that the money actually reaches DANA victims and that user data does not end up in the hands of malicious third parties.

Scam attempts, in the case of DANA, are even taking place physically, outside the screen of the smartphone or computer. The Red Cross has warned, for example, about information that points to criminals impersonating volunteers who ring the doorbells of homes in several Spanish cities in order to request financial aid on behalf of the organization.

“We want to inform in a forceful way that none of our volunteers are visiting homes asking for collaboration,” the Red Cross said. It doesn’t matter if the person requesting donations is dressed in the classic red vest with the cross symbol.

These scams would also be carried out through phone calls. And the Red Cross doesn’t act like that either. Like most NGOs that are collaborating to help those affected, they have their own official page, on their website, intended for collecting donations. And these are the places that citizens should go to if they want to provide help to those affected.

The experts consulted by ABC emphasize that “if there are scams like these, it is because they work.” «We must be careful and make sure that the sender of an email, a call or a message asking for help is who they say they are. It doesn’t cost anything to confirm it with an internet search or by making a call to clear up any doubts,” says Lambert. Albors, meanwhile, highlights the importance of having, in the case of DANA, special care “with the publications that are being made on social networks with requests for help.”