Is PayPal Safe, Now??

[tink2dw]

I was around in the Early days, of Ebay and PayPal when...PayPal was hack every other week. With a page that look like PayPal's real page. And there was an Alert posted, all the time, when it happened. It made me so leery of it, I wanted nothing to do with them.

Now I see that Online Stores are using Paypal so they can't get hacked and lose your payment info.

Is PayPal really safe today?? do you get the same benefits as do with a credit card? Is PayPal still too iffy? or they still have problems?

 

[Iowajes]

I've used paypal since it started. I've never had an issue. I still use it regularly.

I do change my password whenever I hear of any problems.

 

[pryncess527]

I've used paypal since it started. I've never had an issue. I still use it regularly.

I do change my password whenever I hear of any problems.

Ditto. I've just always ignored/reported suspicious emails and use a strong password that I change periodically. I've never had an issue.

though I also don't keep a lot of money in my PayPal account.

 

[Kogo Shuko]

I think you will always get those scam emails trying to convince you to log in to your Paypal, eBay, Etsy account.

The sites themselves haven't been hacked.

The email scammers are trying to get your username and password in order to hack you, therefore blindly sending out their scam email.

Paypal has taken to sending all emails with your first name in the greeting so that you know it's actually them. The scammers don't actually have your information, so they would not know your name.

 

[ncdj2013]

I 've used Paypal since it started and I've never had a problem. Just ignore emails that look like they are from Paypal and you should be fine

 

[figment forever]

i've had a paypal account for a few years and have never had a problem.

scam emails have nothing to do with whether paypal is safe or not.

you just need to not be foolish enough to do what the scam emails tell you to do.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

My husband has used PayPal for many years and has never had a problem. I will say that his PayPal account is connected to a different credit that has a much lower line of credit than our "regular" credit...just in case.

 

[LJSquishy]

Paypal is pretty safe these days. I have mine set up so that anytime I want to actually use Paypal, I have to log in with the usual username/password and and have a text message sent to my phone with a special temporary code to enter in. That is the only way to log in to my account.

My Paypal was hacked just last year actually, before setting up the text message code and having a more secure password. I only used Paypal maybe once a year at the most so I didn't even know the text message code thing was an option. My bank took care of the issue right away with no delay in restoring our funds to our checking account. The way we caught the fraudulent charge was that Paypal sent an email to me confirming I made a purchase of $XXX (which I did not make). That's what I like about Paypal...they send an email paper trail each step of the way. I feel confident enough to continue using Paypal. I used it to pay the person we're renting our DVC points from and love that it's basically instant. Paypal does have a protection guarantee against fraudulant charges, and if they will not cover you, your bank/credit card company will.

 

[tink2dw]

Does PayPal need a certain amount money in the account?

If you are buying a gift from an online store,and you know the cost, then can you put that much money in the account? Or do you have, say $100.00, in the account at all times, like a checking account??

 

[Iowajes]

I don't keep any money in my paypal account.
It is linked to my credit card. Using paypal is just the same as using my CC.

If someone else pays me money, I will sometimes have it deposited to my checking account, or I will use it to pay out of the paypal account. But I've never put money into the account.

 

[LJSquishy]

Does PayPal need a certain amount money in the account?

If you are buying a gift from an online store,and you know the cost, then can you put that much money in the account? Or do you have, say $100.00, in the account at all times, like a checking account??

You can link your Paypal account with your checking account or debit card/credit card. You do not need to transfer money into your Paypal account in order to purchase something. Some people like to store money in their Paypal account, but I don't. If someone pays me through Paypal, I transfer that money into my checking account (which is free to do). If I purchase something using Paypal, it just comes directly out of my checking account from my debit card or goes onto my credit card.

 

[sherlock14]

The original post in this thread, suggests PayPal has a history of being compromised/hacked. This is nonsensical, not true.

 

[disneychrista]

The original post in this thread, suggests PayPal has a history of being compromised/hacked. This is nonsensical, not true.

I know my account was hacked a few years ago.

 

[sherlock14]

I know my account was hacked a few years ago.

PayPal databases hacked to recover PayPal user information, etc. - the answer is NO.

Not to belabor the point but if your individual account was compromised it was because you blundered in some fashion and thus allowed your account to be accessed / compromised. Phishing/spoof emails that you read and click a link contained in same, is one very common way to have an online account compromised.. In closing, PayPal today, is a terrific adjunct, it is safe and not "iffy".

 

[disneychrista]

Not to belabor the point but if your individual account was compromised it was because you blundered in some fashion and thus allowed your account to be accessed / compromised. Phishing/spoof emails that you read and click a link contained in same, is one very common way to have an online account compromised.. In closing, PayPal today, is a terrific adjunct, it is safe and not "iffy".

Yep it was all my fault.

I am not saying that PayPal as a whole is unsafe, just saying that accounts CAN be hacked/compromised. And NO I did not click any phishing email or anything else. I think the worst that I did was to not use my account for an extended period of time. My account is now closed and I will no longer use paypal. I have never had another account hacked/compromised.

 

[supersnoop]

eBay was hacked last year and the hackers got email addresses and passwords. If you used the same email and password for PayPal, which is pretty common, they recommended you change both passwords, even though PayPal wasn't actually compromised.