MV Rena oil spill has been a major disaster. It is slowly affecting New Zealand’s abundant nature with the oil spill making a huge negative impact on marine creatures and birds. While everyone else is busy helping out in cleaning the thick oil covering the shore, scam artists are also busy calling concerned people.

Scammers have a new modus in collecting people’s money. They are taking advantage of the New Zealand oil spill for their own benefits. Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) has received numerous calls and reports from people about these scam artists calling them for donation. Scammers claim that they are from MNZ, raising funds for wildlife rescue. But MNZ denied these requests.

“We are not appealing to the public for donations for any aspect of the oil spill response,” according to the institution.

The same thing happened during Haiti’s earthquake disaster. Scam artists called and emailed people to ask for donations for the victims of the natural disaster. They pretended to be representatives from Red Cross so they can ask for money, goods, and everything that they can get.

Advance fee fraud scammers or most commonly called as 419 scammers also took advantage of the Egypt revolution, when Egypt's long-standing president, Hosni Mubarak was forced to resigned due to massive uprising. These scammers promise a huge amount of money but demand an upfront payment. They used the president’s name in sending emails to ask for money.

More recent ly, scammer also tried to take advantage of the death of Steve Jobs. Scammers employed different styles in collecting money and fees from people. A few claimed that Apple is giving away free iPads, asking online users to take surveys to qualify for the raffle. After signing up, users will be redirected to a blank page. The page might be filled with malicious codes and the next thing they know, they had become a victime of a hackjob.

To avoid being scammed, contact the main institution or people concerned directly or better yet, go to their office personally. For MV Rena oil spill concerns, contact MNZ if you want to help in any form. Call them at 0508 22 55 22 or email them at enquiries@maritimenz.govt.nz. They need more help in cleaning the shore and preserving wildlife.