Hundreds of GoFundMe pages have been launched for Hawaiʻi families to help with hurricane relief, and officials are urging residents to double-check their donations are going to verified fundraisers.
After a disaster happens, some scams and fake fundraisers can pop up under false names. Angelique McNaughton, the senior communications manager at GoFundMe, said the organization has a 24/7 trust and safety team that investigates scams and immediately shuts them down.
“Being a safe and trusted place to give and receive help is our top priority, and there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to keep the platform safe,” McNaughton said.
She added that there are two crucial elements that each fundraiser has: a messenger button that allows users to communicate directly with the organizer, and an option to “flag” a fundraiser that may look suspicious, which alerts the trust team to investigate and verify the account information and validity.
But there are other platforms and pages outside of the team’s control. McNaughton said users can do their own temp checks on a fundraiser by making sure there is a clear title, image and story description, as well a transparent disclaimer on how the money will be used and who it will go to.
“Then also check the connection between the organizer and the person they're raising funds for. How are they related or connected to the recipient of the funds? Then look at the comments and the donations. Are direct family, friends, community members making donations? Are they leaving supportive comments?” McNaughton said.
GoFundMe has partnered with Hawaiʻi Mutual Aid to distribute money raised through the platform's 2026 Hurricane Relief Fund, which has collected about $25,000 so far. A similar fund was launched earlier this year dedicated to flood relief and raised over $1 million, which partially went to those impacted by the Kona Low storms in March.
