Stupid question...Paypal or bank account?

[steve B]

Originally Posted by brass_rat

1) From a pure "safety" standpoint, as long as you are using a "strong" password, your account is probably as safe as that as your bank's online account. (Definite preference to banks that use 2-factor authentication though.) I would recommend using a password management service such as 1password (https://1password.com) to manage your passwords (don't use the same password across accounts, don't use "weak" passwords).

NO, Paypal has a security hole large enough to drive a bunch of armored cars through.


I had my email compromised, probably by some malware that captured passwords.

Paypal password changed, payments sent, Paypal said "oh no, those aren't fraudulent, they're just like the rest of your transactions" - Even though I've never randomly sent 400 to someone in … I forget where, some African country that's not one of the usual suspects.

2nd factor was them sending a text asking if the second one was ok. At 4 AM. it timed out before we got up. so 2 factor as they implement it is essentially useless.

Got the bank to reverse them, but it took about a month.


Thought we had it all fixed, different email, even stronger passwords, get it back on.

Password changed, money sent, 200 and 400 They caught one but not the other. Denied the one they didn't catch. This crew was smarter, or the same ones had learned, I never got emails telling me about the payments. I suspect they were deleted off the server before my email program could download them.




Paypal is totally unsecured, and will not help whatsoever if anything happens.


Steve Birmingham

[hcv123]

spoiler alert - you may think twice about using paypal if you follow this link:

http://www.paypalsucks.com/

I found the site years ago when I had the one of two HUGE problems with PP that I've had in the years I've been using it - they cost me $1500. I purchased a 1st issue of Playboy from a seller from I forget where. It was supposed to be shipped overnight. While the "seller" had been quite communicative up to the point I paid her, she was supposed to email tracking information which she never did. Being suspicious already, I called Paypal and asked what happens if I dispute the transaction - I was told the money is "locked" in the sellers account until the dispute is resolved. I said okay, thank you, I'll give it till the morning before I dispute it. When I had no communication by the morning (less than 12 hours after I had sent payment), I decided to play it safe and file a dispute. I did. I don't recall the timeline, but I got an email from paypal saying there was no money in the sellers account to lock - I communicated the conversation I had the night before with a paypal rep. The silence was deafening. Paypal did NOTHING to resolve this for me or get my money back - they aided a thief and communicated incorrect information to me.


Further based on my experiences and those of others I have spoken to, PP seems to have a stupid amount of control, very few rules that they are bound by and virtually no reasonable recourse if they harm you.

[Bpm0014]

I know people who have had their accounts "locked" due to a buyer dispute.

Same here. I was the victim of a scam when I sold my old iphone. He got my iphone, a partial refund, and then told paypal he never even received the iphone. This was 2 years ago and my account is still frozen. I hate paypal...

[jfkheat]

I have a Paypal debt card so when I get large payments I just use my debt card to pay bills and buy gas and groceries.

James

[Leon]

Originally Posted by jfkheat

I have a Paypal debt card so when I get large payments I just use my debt card to pay bills and buy gas and groceries.

James

Is a debt card kind of like a get out of jail free card?

I always transfer anything over approximately $100 to my bank account. No need to have PP control my money for me.

[dplath]

PayPal also offers an option to setup a security key. By activating the security key your account requires that they text you a one time password to use each time you make a payment. A little cumbersome but the extra layer of security is nice.