EXPLAINER: How crowdfunding helps real Astroworld victims

In the hours following the pandemonium at the Astroworld Festival that left eight people dead and dozens injured, the requests for donations started multiplying on social media.

Some immediately seemed genuine. The family of 16-year-old Brianna Rodriguez, a junior at Heights High School in Houston, was looking for help with funeral costs. The sister of Rodolfo Pena was looking for the same. The family of Axel Acosta was trying to raise money to travel from Washington to Texas to bring his body home and to pay for his funeral.

Others were immediately suspect. There was the guy who wanted money to replace his new sneakers because they got blood on them. There were people posting their Cash App handles and their Venmo names claiming they needed help with medical bills. There were people claiming to be parents whose kids died during the Travis Scott concert at Houston's NRG Park asking for cash.

Crowdfunding is an increasingly popular method of getting financial help directly to people who need it. Market research firm Technavio estimates that crowdfunding will increase by about 15%, or $196 billion, by 2025.

That growth is also generating more governmental scrutiny. Last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission brought its first case involving crowdfunding fraud.

Kevin Scally, chief relationship officer at Charity Navigator, the world’s largest nonprofit evaluator, said the success that some personal fundraisers receive encourages scammers to try creating fake stories to land donations.

“We always encourage people to give with their heart,” Scally said. “But we also want them to use their head.”

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