In the wake of the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, thousands of people are turning to crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe to support the school and victims’ families in their time of need.
But many are now on alert Broward Co. Sheriff’s Office warned of fraudulent accounts.
In turn, GoFundMe is now working with local officials to stop scammers and redirect those with good intentions to a designated site, being maintained by the Broward Education Foundation.
GoFundMe’s Dir. of Communications has also taken to Twitter, to reassure those giving that the company is actively monitoring campaigns and removing Parkland-related campaigns that have no direct, personal connection to the victims or families.
According to the company, there are no platform fees for using GoFundMe, so 100% of the funds collected after payment processing charges will go directly to the victims and families.
There are other steps those who wish to give via GoFundMe should be aware of:
- The safest way to donate is to do your research. If you don’t know the campaign manager, check out online profiles or LinkedIn to further verify the set up account
- Use a credit card of paypal which have protection policies. The company also says the platform is backed by the GoFundMe Guarantee, protecting donors with a refund policy up to 1000 per campaign
- If you suspect fraudulent activity, you can also report the campaign.
LOCAL IMPACT
