L.A. fires: Is that GoFundMe account legit? How to spot scams when helping victims
Thousands of online GoFundMe fundraising campaigns have been created to support the victims of the devastating wildfires that have scorched portions of Los Angeles County, but officials are warning to be on the lookout for fraudulent GoFundMe accounts.
Since the first wildfire ignited Tuesday morning, GoFundMe campaigns created by and on behalf of fire victims began to pop up, requesting any kind of monetary support to cover disaster relief, rebuilding, immediate short-term lodging, clothing and other emergency needs.
This article is provided free of charge to help keep our community safe and supported during these devastating fires.
A close friend of Erin Berkowitz, a natural dye artist who lost her Altadena home in the Eaton fire, created a GoFundMe fundraiser Wednesday night to help replace art materials and supplies she lost to the fire. But by Thursday morning, she learned that a false Instagram account was imitating her and reaching out to friends and other followers sharing a link to a false GoFundMe fundraiser.
“They imitated my photos and my bio on my social media on theirs and our usernames were almost identical, they just added an underscore to a part of theirs,” she said.
The fake GoFundMe had her exact information; the only difference was a slightly different webpage URL.
Berkowitz along with her friends and family immediately reported the fake account and the fundraiser was promptly taken down within 24 hours.
“To deal with that at the worst moment of my life, like the scariest, most upsetting, saddening moment of my life,” she said. “For that then to be happening was also just extremely worrying and stressful.”
In the last year, job scams have been on the rise, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit that helps consumers with identity compromises and crime
To help fight such fraud, GoFundMe created a centralized online hub that contains all verified fundraising pages related to the Los Angeles-area wildfires.
Los Angeles County 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger has also urged people to donate but to be careful about online fundraisers, especially GoFundMe.
“You’ve got scams taking place. You’ve got GoFundMes that are not legitimate,” Barger said. “If it doesn’t pass the smell test, or if it sounds too good to be true — call my office for God’s sakes, I’ll flush it out for you, but please do not fall for these scams.”
Here is how GoFundMe verifies fundraising campaigns on its platform, collects a fee and includes a tip function as part of the donation process, plus tips on how to check if a campaign is legitimate.
As firefighters continue to battle multiple major wildfires, The Times has compiled a list of resources to help.
How GoFundMe verifies fundraisers
As of Monday evening there are 103 webpages of more than 1,200 active and verified GoFundMe fundraisers on the centralized hub.
For a fundraiser to be considered verified, “it must go through an enhanced due diligence review process,” that includes human and technical tools designed to catch misuse, said a GoFundMe spokesperson.
Members of the company’s Trust and Safety team work directly with the fundraiser organizers to confirm their connection to the person or family they’re raising funds for and help them set up beneficiaries, according to the company.
The havoc caused by the blazes — more than 28,000 acres have been scorched — necessitates immediate and long-term relief.
“When a fundraiser is created to help someone other than the organizer, funds are safely held by our payment processors until the beneficiary’s information is verified, then transferred directly to the recipient of the GoFundMe,” the spokesperson said.
Once fundraisers are verified, they are added to the centralized hub.
If someone who wants to donate to a fundraiser has questions about it, GoFundMe encourages people to use the contact button to reach the organizer and ask them any questions directly.
Coverage of the fires ravaging Altadena, Malibu, Pacific Palisades and Pasadena, including stories about the devastation, issues firefighters faced and the weather.
If inquiries go unanswered or if someone has concerns about a fundraiser, it should be reported to the company. Anyone can alert the company of suspicious activity by clicking the “Report Fundraiser” button. That will prompt an immediate investigation to verify the legitimacy of the campaign.
When an investigation is conducted and officials discover the fundraiser was fraudulent, anyone who donated to it will receive a refund. Through the GoFundMe Giving Guarantee, the company guarantees donors a full refund.
“GoFundMe has zero tolerance for the misuse of our platform and cooperates with law enforcement investigations of those accused of wrongdoing,” the spokesperson said.
Those looking to assist residents affected by the Los Angeles County firestorm have a number of options to donate money, materials or their time.
What’s the fee to donate on GoFundMe?
When a person makes a donation on a GoFundMe fundraiser there is a standard transaction fee of 2.9% plus 30 cents per donation.
According to a company spokesperson, the fee helps the company “pay its payment processors and safely deliver funds.”
What is the “tip” feature when I want to donate on GoFundMe?
Once a donor hits the “Donation” button, they’re taken to a page where they can elect to make a one-time or monthly monetary donation and include the amount they want to gift.
Right below that is a “Tip GoFundMe services” feature that automatically sets the tip at 14% of what you’re gifting to the fundraiser. The tipped amount goes directly to the GoFundMe company. The amount can be lowered to zero or increased to 35% of the gifted amount.
The tip feature is completely voluntary, according to the company.
“GoFundMe is primarily powered by voluntary tips and relies on these completely optional contributions from donors to maintain our quality customer service, trust and safety protections, and world-class fundraising technology,” said a company spokesperson.
Fraud is a year-round, multibillion-dollar enterprise, but the holiday season offers a wide-open window of opportunity as scammers fish with email, phone calls, texts, fliers and regular mail
If a fundraiser is unverified, how can I tell it’s legitimate?
GoFundMe officials and other experts encourage people who want to donate to a GoFundMe campaign to do a little research before becoming a donor.
Review the fundraiser page. Check to see if the fundraiser has a clear title, image and story description. Check the description for typos or misspellings.
Corroborate the fundraiser description. Cross-reference the details in the description or the fundraiser creator with social media accounts or local news reports, said Ruth Susswein, spokesperson for Consumer Action.
You can also use online search engines such as Spokeo to confirm a person’s contact information, including their address.
You can also check whether an image is AI-generated, edited or the origin of a photo by dropping it into the Google Reverse Image Search Tool.
Understand the use of the funds. What is the purpose of the fundraising and is the organizer transparent about how funds will be used?
Check the beneficiary connection: How is the organizer related to the recipient of the funds?
Look at the comments and donations: Are direct family, friends or community members making donations and leaving supportive comments?
More importantly, trust your gut.
“If something feels off to you, assume that you’re right and trust that feeling,” Susswein said.
Times staff writer Grace Toohey contributed to this report.
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