Apple highlights Apple Pay charity resources for 'Giving Tuesday'

In preparation of Giving Tuesday, a global philanthropic movement now in its sixth year, Apple on Monday sent out emails informing customers that they can donate to their favorite charitable causes using Apple Pay.

The email, which urges customers to "Donate with Apple Pay on #GivingTuesday," promotes six major charities including the American Red Cross, charity: water, DonorsChoose.org, (PRODUCT)RED, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital and the World Wildlife Fund.

Links included in the message lead to donation pages for each respective organization. Users visiting the websites on devices boasting Touch ID or Face ID biometric security can contribute via Apple's payment service. Interestingly, the Apple Pay prompt does not appear when following the same links on a Mac or iOS device lacking Touch ID.

"The gift of giving — made easier and more secure with Apple Pay," Apple says in the email. "Apple Pay helps you instantly give to the causes you care about."

The email also includes links to Apple's dedicated Apple Pay explainer webpage and its "Where to use" Apple Pay page, the latter of which contains information about other nonprofits that accept the in-house payments product.

Introduced in 2012 by the Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact, Giving Tuesday shines a light on charitable giving just as Black Friday and Cyber Monday promote consumer spending. The campaign is often referenced by the hashtag #GivingTuesday, as social media plays an important role in spreading information about participating organizations, events and other resources.

Apple often uses its wide e-commerce reach to assist charitable organizations. The company routinely opens iTunes donations for American Red Cross efforts, most recently raising more than $3 million for Hurricane Harvey relief, and markets special (PRODUCT)RED versions of popular devices. Apple also partners with WWF to raise money for environmental initiatives and has in the past donated a portion of App Store proceeds in celebration of Earth Day.