PayPal won't deny Unauthorised Charge

[rahhhul]

A week ago (23rd Jan) my computer was infected with malware and various accounts of mine hacked including my PayPal. I have since regained control of everything, have new cards from my bank and did a fresh install of Windows to my PC. Also have set up 2FA everywhere where I did not have it.

From my PayPal account the hacker tried to make 4 different transactions all to digital gaming stores. The first was on CD Keys for a value of £54.99 and then the rest on G2A for various values in Euros. Luckily the 3 G2A transactions were cancelled by PayPal however the 1st one to CD Keys went through.

This happened late in the evening and upon finding out in the morning I opened up a case with PayPal for the payment. However they closed the case saying "Thank you for reporting this case. After reviewing your case, we found that this transaction was not unauthorised and hence isn't eligible for PayPal Buyer Protection." I then called my bank (HSBC) reporting the fraudulent activity as I could see the payment in my pending payments section and they were able to reverse it. So at this point no money had been taken from my bank account however on PayPal it was still saying the payment had been completed.

Fast forward to today (30th Jan), PayPal tried to put the payment through with my bank but as I had already denied it, my PayPal account is now in negative balance. I called up PayPal support but they were unable to help and said I should go to my bank to claim a charge back. But then when speaking with my bank, they said that they can do nothing either as they've already denied the payment. 

So now I feel stuck in a situation not sure on what to do? Surely PayPal can see it as fraudulent activity as they cancelled the 3 transactions straight after the one to CD Keys (They were all made within minutes of each other)? But then they are saying there is nothing they can do. Does this mean I am out of options and will have to fund the £54.99 myself to get out of a negative balance? How long can I be in a negative balance on PayPal for and what are the implications? I'm a student and have rent/bills to pay so can't easily throw away £54.99 right now.

Any help on this situation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. 

[Mark263]

Hi Rahuhul, 

I am currently in the exact same situtation as you. A student. Computer infected with malware, had to reset it, and my autofill data being breached and being used to purchase items on CD Keys using my paypal payment information, and my case being declined. I have had my case closed, reopenned and closed, but I don't want to give up and just let this happen. Roughly £75 was spent which was literally all I had in my bank account, and I too have bills and direct debits to pay. Did you resolve your case in the end? If so please let me know what steps I can take to resolve this issue too.