Crowdfunding for Grifters

What are the data concerning scams in crowd funding?

The phenomenon of GoFundMe has allowed people with compelling stories, or who are just down on their luck, to raise money. This morning, I woke up to the (horrifying) realization that a person who has been harassing someone (*cough*) on the internet is now crowdfunding to pay for it! It got me thinking, what is the data behind fraud in crowd funding, and what can we do about it?

The following may come as a total surprise, but it turns out that not everyone tells the truth on the Internet. Some people might even say things that are not true, because it's in their financial interest. I know, it's shocking and heartbreaking. I'm aghast also.

As one academic paper put it:

Unsurprisingly, deception and fraud in such platforms have also increased, but have not been thoroughly studied to understand what characteristics can expose such behavior and allow its automatic detection and blocking. Indeed, crowdfunding platforms are the only ones typically performing oversight for the campaigns lau…