Orlando Fundraising Exposes Weaknesses in Do-It-Yourself Charity Campaigns

The more than 430 fundraisers posted on the GoFundMe website after the mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., have exposed weaknesses inherent in these popular do-it-yourself charity campaigns: waste, questionable intentions and little oversight.

The fundraisers—an average of more than four for each of the 49 killed and 53 wounded—include travelers asking for cash, a practitioner of ancient healing, a personal safety instructor who sells quick loaders for assault rifles and even convicted identity impostors.

“There was a deluge,” said Holly Salmons, president of the Better Business Bureau for Central Florida. “It was almost impossible for us or anyone else to be able to vet.”