A WARNING has been issued over a scam e-mail which is asking people to donate to the Japanese Tsunami Appeal.
The e-mail, which looks as though it has been sent by the Japanese Red Cross, asks people to make a donation to an e-mail address via the website MoneyBookers.
The British Red Cross has not sent any e-mails soliciting donations for the appeal and a statement on its website reads: "Whenever there is a disaster, such as the Japan earthquake and tsunami and the New Zealand or Haiti earthquakes, there will be those who seek to take advantage of people wanting to donate for the relief effort. Many scams involve emails that claim to be on behalf of the Red Cross and there are numerous variations."
Japan's east coast was hit by an earthquake, measuring 9 on the Richter scale, on Friday. This triggered a seven metre high tsunami which devastated the east of the country. The death toll is expected to rise to around 10,000.
Anyone living in the Island who wishes to donate can do so locally by dropping a cheque into the Isle of Man branch of the British Red Cross at the Isle of Man Business Park in Braddan. Donations can also be made on the Red Cross Website here.
