Digital Smarts - Looking Critically at GoFundMe Medical Pleas

Online crowd-funding is an effective way to get the word out about people who are in desperate need of financial help, but do you know who is receiving the funding and the real circumstances of their situation? Steven Petrow lists some criteria you might think about before making a donation in a recent column on the USA Today site. The list includes donating to those you know and trust, understanding that you will never know exactly what the money will be used for, and knowing these types of contributions are not tax deductible.