One quick click on the "Donate Now" button - giving money has never been easier. As e-philanthropy looks set to be one of the cheapest and simplest ways to raise money for charities, even the most impoverished of organisations are getting websites together.

Websites work to raise awareness of an organisation, to inform users about what it is doing and to publicise specific issues. And, with a credit card, they are an easy way to make a donation.

"Children use our site for projects at school," says Eithne Healy of Concern. "They fill their parents in on Concern, and it is the parents who may or may not make the donations." At the moment, the typical Internet user seems to be a young middle-class male, with an interest in environmental issues, health issues such as AIDS and global social-justice issues - good news for the likes of Greenpeace, Body Positive and Amnesty International.

In fact, quite apart from fundraising, the Internet has proven a very effective facility for Amnesty International as a means of co-ordinating campaigns which need a quick response. Getting information out fast can be a matter of life or death, which is where e-mail comes in. Amnesty has a network of supporters who can be called upon at short notice to send e-mails to lobby for the release of political prisoners.

The Internet is also an effective marketing tool. Trocaire is among the many organisations which have used buttons and banner advertisements on various websites other than their own.

In the United States, of course, things are really taking off, with Internet auction sites in aid of charities and on-line charity malls. Recently America On Line launched a data base of thousands of charities - Helping.org.

GiveForChange.com is a site with information on voluntary groups, divided into several categories (see illustration). And GreaterGood.com offers users a chance to buy products from 200 charities.

But beware. Charities don't have to be vetted in any way to set up a cyber-donation facility. Before you contribute, double-check you're sending to a reputable organisation. Take a close look at the group's stated purpose, how much of your pound is used for charitable purposes and whether transactions are secure.

And, most importantly, be absolutely sure you are sending money to the organisation you mean to send money to, and not one with a remarkably similar name . . . .