The holidays are underway.

With charitable giving and online shopping surging, the FBI reminds the public to stay alert for schemes designed to steal money and personal information.

“The holiday season is a time to bring people together, but scammers are working to separate you from your money and personal information,” Wayne A. Jacobs, special agent in charge of FBI Philadelphia, said in a recent press release.

“Whether you are shopping, connecting with loved ones, or looking to give back, there are small, but important steps everyone can take to better protect themselves online: if you didn’t call them, don’t tell them – never share personal or banking information on an unsolicited call; if the link is a mystery, the risk isn’t – don’t click unrequested links; use secure payment methods and verify charitable organizations before donating.”

If you have any doubt, reach out – call the FBI at 1800-CALL-FBI or report it at IC3.gov.

According to authorities, some of the most common holiday shopping scams reported to the FBI include:

•Nondelivery scams, where you, as a buyer, pay for goods or services you find online, but you never receive your items.

•Nonpayment scams, where you, as a seller, ship purchased goods or services, but you never receive payment for them.

•Gift card fraud, where a seller asks you to pay with a prepaid card.

Authorities also remind the public of charity fraud scams criminals use during the holidays.

Charity fraud schemes seek donations for organizations that do little or no work – instead donations go to the fake charity’s creator.

Charity scammers can reach out in many forms including emails, text messages, cold calls and through social media.

Use the following tips to make sure charitable donations arrive to a legitimate cause and to protect yourself from potential scammers while shopping online:

•Give to established charities or whose charitable work you know and trust.

•Be aware of organizations with copycat names or names similar to reputable organizations.

•Be wary of new organizations that claim to aid victims of recent high-profile disasters.

•Give using a check or credit card. If an organization asks for donations through cash, gift card, virtual currency or wire transfer, it’s probably a scam.

•Do not click links or open email attachments from someone you do not know.

•Manually type out links instead of clicking on them.

•Do not provide any personal information in response to an email, robocall or robotext.

•Check the website’s address – most legitimate charity organization websites use .org, not .com.

•Use strong, unique and complex passwords or phrases for each individual account; do not reuse passwords across multiple accounts.

•Beware of phishing attempts. Do not click on any suspicious links or attachments in emails, texts, websites or through social media.

•Check the website or URL when shopping to make sure it is legitimate and secure.

•Be vigilant when purchasing through a third-party vendor or seller.

•Use a credit card when shopping online and regularly monitor bank statements to confirm all purchases are your own.

•Always get tracking numbers for items you have purchased online.

If you believe you are a victim of a holiday shopping scam or a related fraud, authorities encourage you to report it to your financial institution and to the FBI by filing a complaint to the IC3 at ic3.gov.