The work of a nonprofit has never been more demanding.
I recently had the opportunity to talk to Diane Yentel at our Generosity Xchange 2025 conference. As the CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits, Diane has been dedicated to advancing the vital role, capacity, and voice of charitable organizations across the country. We spoke at length about the immense pressures facing organizations today, and one of the most significant challenges is what we call “Generosity Uncertainty”—the erosion of donor trust that makes an already difficult job even harder.
That’s why the recent news about GoFundMe creating 1.4 million donation pages for nonprofits without their consent is so concerning.
This action treated a nonprofit’s brand, mission, and donor relationships as commodities to be leveraged at scale. It created confusion for donors and places yet another administrative burden on already overstretched nonprofit teams. More importantly, it chips away at the very foundation of our sector: trust.
Our Stance: Technology Must Serve, Not Co-opt
At Neon One, we believe that personal connections fuel nonprofit growth. Fundraising is, and always will be, deeply personal. Technology should exist to augment and scale the human element of connection, not to automate it away without consent.
Your brand, your mission, and the relationships you’ve painstakingly built with your supporters are your most valuable assets. They should never be co-opted.
This moment serves as a critical reminder for all of us in the nonprofit technology space. Our role is to be trusted partners, to provide tools that empower you to build and strengthen your community, and to always, always act with trust, transparency, and integrity.
Upon learning of this situation, our team immediately took action. We identified that many of our customers had one of these auto-generated pages created for them, most of them unclaimed. We have since reached out to every one of them to make sure they were aware and had guidance on what to do next to protect their brand, their donor relationships, and claim and donation funds made to their organization.
You can find step-by-step instructions for how to protect your organization below.
The Vision: A More Connected Future
Moments like these are clarifying. They force us to return to our foundational principles. Trust, transparency, and integrity are non-negotiable.
Our vision is for a nonprofit technology ecosystem built on a foundation of genuine partnership. We believe you shouldn’t have to sacrifice relationships for efficiency; you can, and should, have both. We are committed to being the partner that helps you do just that—today, and every day.
Sincerely,
Keith Reed
CEO, Neon One
The Guide: Your Step-by-Step Plan to Take Action
We know you have enough on your plate without having to navigate a complex and unexpected administrative process. To simplify the process you’ll need to follow to regain control of your online presence, we’ve consolidated the necessary information into a clear, step-by-step guide.
First, determine if your organization has an auto-generated page. You can search for your organization by name or EIN at: https://www.gofundme.com/charity/claim/search
If you find your page, you have three potential paths forward:
Path 1: CLAIM Your Page (To control branding and funds)
Claiming the page gives you control over its content and, most importantly, allows you to access any donor data for proper stewardship.
- What you’ll need: The process requires you to verify your identity and connection to the nonprofit. Be prepared to submit documents such as a government-issued ID, your IRS Form 990, a recent pay stub, or a bank statement listing you as an authorized signer.
- The steps: You will need to create a GoFundMe account with your official work email and follow the prompts to submit your documentation for verification.
Path 2: How to REMOVE Your Page (If you do not want a presence on the platform)
If you prefer not to have a presence on the platform, you can request a formal takedown.
- The steps: Submit a removal request through GoFundMe’s data removal form.
- Recommended language: In your request, we suggest using phrases like “unauthorized charitable solicitation” and “brand misuse” to strengthen your claim.
- Your rights: If your request is not addressed in a timely manner, know that you have the right to escalate the issue to your State Attorney General or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
Path 3: How to COLLECT Funds (If donations have been made)
If your page has received donations, you must first claim your page (see Path 1) and then choose how you will receive the funds.
To get your money in a timely manner, you will need to enroll in one of the following services:
- Enable GoFundMe Pay: U.S. nonprofits can sign up to use GoFundMe Pay. Once enabled, funds are sent directly to you through their payment processor, Stripe, and will appear in your regular payout reports.
- Enroll with PayPal Giving Fund (PPGF): You can enroll your organization with PayPal Giving Fund. Once enrolled, you will receive the funds in your PayPal account at the end of each month.
- If You Do Not Enroll in Either Service: If you do not actively enroll in GoFundMe Pay or PayPal Giving Fund, the funds will eventually be sent to your nonprofit via a physical check. It is critical to know that this verification and mailing process can take three to five months from the date of the first donation.
We’re Here to Help
If people have made donations to your organization on one of GoFundMe’s pages, you should be able to retrieve your donors’ data. That information is going to be important as you seek to reach out to those supporters and build relationships with them in a meaningful way.
We’re here to help you do that. If you’re a Neon One customer, you can import your supporters’ data into your system. For step-by-step guidance on how to do that, we’ve put together an article on how to use our import manager.
If you encounter any questions while you update your CRM with your donors’ information, please email our team at [email protected]. We’re standing by to help.
