[dbcolli]

I was duped on a official looking email from Pay Pal wanting to verify me. After giving some information it became clear it is a scam and a call to Pay Pal confirmed it. I had to change my password and cancel a credit card. I had the same thing from Apple wanting to confirm a purchase a few weeks ago..
It's getting scary, what to trust.
Fool me once !!!!

[asianthree]

Originally Posted by dbcolli

I was duped on a official looking email from Pay Pal wanting to verify me. After giving some information it became clear it is a scam and a call to Pay Pal confirmed it. I had to change my password and cancel a credit card. I had the same thing from Apple wanting to confirm a purchase a few weeks ago..
It's getting scary, what to trust.
Fool me once !!!!

Look to see who the email is coming from. I rarely get these email, they go straight to spam, which I dumb bulk every couple of days. These email say they are from amazon, PayPal, Apple and many others just go to the top of email, and see who sent it. Then send to spam, you will see less and less In your inbox.

[retiredguy123]

I have never used Pay Pal because it is a way for merchants to take away your dispute rights under the Federal credit card laws. I will only do business with merchants who will accept a credit card directly. If you use Pay Pal, you cannot dispute a charge directly with the merchant.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

I used to get those paypal scam e-mails all the time. I don't know why, because I don't have a paypal account, never did. Used to get ebay account verification requests too, but same situation - no account. Scammers gonna scam. But understanding how these scammers prey on people is important, ESPECIALLY if you do legitimate business with the companies they pretend to be.

If you get an e-mail asking for account verification, go to that company's website. Do NOT click on anything in that e-mail. Check that website to see if they're sending random verification requests. If it's a bank or credit card company, call them on the telephone and speak with someone in customer service. DOn't use the phone number on the e-mail. Use the phone number you find on your actual bill.

These scams aren't new, especially the e-bay and pay-pal ones. They've been around since the 1990's. Even just being aware that they exist is protection against being scammed but you still have to be on your toes because they get more sophisticated every year.

[villagetinker]

When I had a paypal account, I had it linked to a separate bank checking account, which generally had just enough money to cover the most recent transaction and a few bucks additional. My logic was if the paypal account got hacked, the crook would get very little for their effort, and I would get immediate notification of an overdrawn account or a denial of the payment. Not sure if this is a good solution, but it does not matter, as i gave up on paypal after they were hacked.

[EPutnam1863]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

I have never used Pay Pal because it is a way for merchants to take away your dispute rights under the Federal credit card laws. I will only do business with merchants who will accept a credit card directly. If you use Pay Pal, you cannot dispute a charge directly with the merchant.

Agreed! I lost out on a charge dispute, so I dropped Pay Pal even though I miss its convenience.

[EdFNJ]

Been using PayPal and eBay) both as a buyer and seller since 1998 with many thousand sales and purchases with only one problem which was immediately resolved in my favor.

I've made VERY large purchases and sales. If you use it carefully and do what VillageTinkerer suggested - separate bank account and separate DEBIT CARD on the account - you'll rarely have an issue unless it was due to something you did wrong. Just do your due diligence on any sale or purchase. Also, VERY IMPORTANT, setup your account with TWO FACTOR AUTHENTICATION so any time you (or anyone tries) to access your account you will get a text with a code that needs to be entered to access the account. You can do the same also for bank accounts and credit card accounts and never use PayPal's SEND TO A FRIEND if requested (unless it really is a friend) because you have zero protection.

People are so afraid of PayPal yet they have no problem handing a credit card (or worse a debit card from their primary bank account) to some stranger in a restaurant who takes it to the back room to charge you (and maybe even make a copy of the card to sell on the web).

[John_W]

In 2011 shortly after I moved to TV, I ordered perfume from a seller for my wife's birthday. When I got the email confirmation from Paypal, I realized it had my old address. I immediately emailed the seller and gave them my new address. They responded that the item had already gone to shipping and it was too late to change, this was within 5 minutes of the purchase.

I watched for shipping update, and the item wasn't shipped for five more days and of course I never got the item, since it went to my old address in Maryland. I contacted Paypal and gave them the information. They responded a few days later that the seller was correct in sending the item to my old address since that was on the Paypal information. They totally disregarded the facts that it didn't ship for 5 days even though the seller's response was obviously a lie and the item didn't go out that same day.

I contact my CC company and gave them the information over the phone. They sent a form which I signed and on the next statement my $33 was credited back to me. So Paypal didn't back me up, but my credit card company did and I still have used Paypal many times since. I figure it's best to have double the backup in a dispute, which luckily I haven't had since.

[fl boomer]

I like the convenience of using Paypal because my credit card information isn't out there at the disposal of a lot of companies & businesses. They often keep your credit card numbers without your knowledge. I once had Paypal contact me direct because someone was trying to scam my account, so I feel comfortable using them knowing that they keep track & question any suspicious activity on my account. One thing you do have to watch is the fact that some merchants accept paypal online, but you can not get a refund if you return the item to the store in person.

[EdFNJ]

Originally Posted by John_W

In 2011 shortly after I moved to TV, I ordered perfume from a seller for my wife's birthday. When I got the email confirmation from Paypal, I realized it had my old address. I immediately emailed the seller and gave them my new address. They responded that the item had already gone to shipping and it was too late to change, this was within 5 minutes of the purchase.

I watched for shipping update, and the item wasn't shipped for five more days and of course I never got the item, since it went to my old address in Maryland. I contacted Paypal and gave them the information. They responded a few days later that the seller was correct in sending the item to my old address since that was on the Paypal information. They totally disregarded the facts that it didn't ship for 5 days even though the seller's response was obviously a lie and the item didn't go out that same day.

I contact my CC company and gave them the information over the phone. They sent a form which I signed and on the next statement my $33 was credited back to me. So Paypal didn't back me up, but my credit card company did and I still have used Paypal many times since. I figure it's best to have double the backup in a dispute, which luckily I haven't had since.

In the end, PayPal was correct. Reason is, that is a common scam for BUYERS. They make a purchase then change the address to a fake "not subject to seller protection" address.


It is also possible the SELLER drop ships from a 3rd party as many do and canceling the sale isn't easy.


The fact you used the CC dispute was correct because SOMETIMES the CC company doesn't even chargeback the sale to the seller, they just take the small loss as it isn't worth the hassle. Amex often does this. Had it been a large sale and if you did the chargeback PayPal can put your account into negative or the dispute may have ended differently with the CC company as the error was really yours.