The Foraker Group

Very recently, GoFundMe launched an online giving platform for more than a million nonprofits without the knowledge or consent of those nonprofits.

As soon as this came to our attention, advocacy efforts began across our network through the National Council of Nonprofits (NCN) to address this deeply flawed approach.

Nonprofits rely on transparency, trust, and control over their own fundraising. GoFundMe’s actions undermined that trust and the integrity of the nonprofit sector.

Thanks to effective advocacy by the National Council of Nonprofits, GoFundMe has now issued this statement. While they have not agreed to take down the site, they have committed to shifting to an opt-in only model and making it easier for nonprofits to remove themselves from the platform at their discretion.

According to their statement and conversations with NCN, GoFundMe has specifically agreed to:

• Remove all unclaimed nonprofit pages
• Change the default so that nonprofit pages are not automatically SEO optimized
• Remove and de-index nonprofit pages so they no longer appear in online searches
• Give nonprofits the choice to opt in to creating a nonprofit page.

As next steps, GoFundMe has told NCN that they are sharing this message with all customers and media. They also plan to release clear, easy-to-use information for nonprofits wishing to remove a previously claimed page, create a new one, or make updates.

Foraker remains concerned about ongoing issues with this platform, including unauthorized users accessing nonprofit pages, donor confusion, and the exorbitant fees GoFundMe charges donors. We strongly encourage nonprofits to conduct their own due diligence before engaging with any online giving platform.

We are committed to working alongside our partners to ensure continued progress in protecting nonprofits and donors. If your organization continues to face challenges, please let us know, and we will request that NCN elevate them to GoFundMe for resolution.