For a good cause; Online fundraising breaks the mold.

Byline: Susan Spencer

Lacey Hale wants to help friends purchase supplies for pet shelters.

Jamila Thompson longs to travel to Italy to volunteer.

Andy DeWolfe stepped up to replace a neighbor boy's stolen dirt bike.

And Dave Howland needed a little extra cash for unexpected budget overruns in his new brewery.

It used to be that people looking to raise money, whether for a trip, a charity, a business venture or other cause, picked up a side job, took out a loan or sold cookies and oversized candy bars.

That was before social media and the explosion in online crowdfunding.

Now, people can easily set up campaigns on websites like GoFundMe or YouCaring, or on project-funding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Through social media networks, they virtually pass the hat to an exponential number of contacts.

GoFundMe, a California-based crowdfunding site, is the largest in the field, with over $630 million raised for personal fundraisers, according to company officials.

In Massachusetts alone, GoFundMe has grown to $11.2 million raised among 49,606 campaigns in 2014, from $132,697 raised among 828 campaigns in 2011.

The most popular items that people seek donations for include medical expenses for pets and people, funeral expenses, travel and household emergencies.

However, there are no guarantees that a crowdfunding campaign organizer will use the money for the intended purpose. No reporting by recipients is required. And even if a donor contributes to a worthy personal cause, unlike contributions to tax-exempt charitable organizations, the contribution generally isn't tax deductible.

GoFundMe officials say that the company's role is to provide visitors with the tools to make informed decisions as to whom they choose to support.

"Only donate to people you personally know and trust,'' said Public Relations Manager Kelsea Little in an email.

She said, "Because crowdfunding creates such a robust paper trail of account-holder activity, fraud on GoFundMe isn't just rare, it's nearly nonexistent.''

Ms. Little advised people to speak to a tax professional about their particular situation, but said, "Most donations on GoFundMe are simply considered to be 'personal gifts,' which are not taxed as income in the U.S.''

Kickstarter, a crowdfunding site for startup projects, states on its website: "Kickstarter does not guarantee projects or investigate a creator's ability to complete their project. On Kickstarter, backers (you!) ultimately decide the...