WILMINGTON – The recent revelation that online fundraising platform GoFundMe created donation pages for 1.4 million charitable nonprofits without their approval or consent has sparked confusion and turmoil throughout the nonprofit community.
News reports indicated that GoFundMe mined public data of 1.4 million 501(c)(3) organizations, along with information collected from “trusted partners” such as Candid and PayPal, which it turned into charity pages. No notice was sent to these organizations that the pages were created on their behalf, and it was not readily apparent how nonprofits could take control of the GoFundMe charity pages.
In response to significant concerns raised by nonprofits and partner organizations, GoFundMe announced Thursday that it had changed its nonprofit pages policy to make the pages opt-in only, removing and de-indexing unclaimed pages, and turning search engine optimization (SEO) off by default.
“Thanks to the quick work and outreach of organizations like the National Council of Nonprofits, this situation was resolved in short order,” said DANA President and CEO Sheila Bravo. “While we are grateful that GoFundMe took quick action, we can’t overstate how serious of a problem these pages – however well-intentioned they might have been – created for nonprofits.
“Establishing donation pages without a nonprofit’s consent can create confusion among donors about the pages’ legitimacy, along with many other issues with donor stewardship and the nonprofit’s brand, messaging and strategy. All of this can shake public confidence in nonprofits at a time when donations are more critical than ever. I urge all Delaware nonprofits to be vigilant when it comes to protecting and securing their online identities and maintain their integrity.”
Nonprofits that are unsure whether their organization has had an unauthorized GoFundMe charity page created for them should visit this site. National Council of Nonprofits (NCN) is continuing to monitor the situation. If any Delaware nonprofits have any questions or issues regarding their charity pages being claimed by an unauthorized user, please contact NCN and DANA.
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