Britain's National Criminal Intelligence Service has warned people of cheats out to make a quick buck by proclaiming they are raising money for tsunami victims.
The NCIS warning, issued Friday night, comes a day after the Charities Commission cautioned about bogus charity collectors.
The NCIS has identified several conmen offering to locate loved ones missing in the disaster and requesting money to be deposited in overseas banks. Some of them operate via e-mail.
"We do not wish to dissuade members of the public from donating money to the registered charity tsunami appeals. But we urge them to exercise vigilance in order to prevent and disrupt these and other possible criminal scams," an NCIS spokesman said.
NCIS has asked the people to contribute only to known charities and recognised outlets collecting money on their behalf and not to respond to any unsolicited e-mail or text messages on mobile phones from unknown sources.
People should ensure donations to non-profit organisations are used for the intended purposes, NCIS said.
They should also be wary of e-mails claiming to have pictures of tsunami-affected areas as attached files; they may contain viruses, it added.
