Fraudulent account opened with Paypal Smart Connect

[Sunshinny]

I received a statement from Paypal Smart Connect saying I owed $1,266.87.  I never opened this account, therefore I am thinking that someone had to hack into my Paypal account in order to open this fraudulent account. Why didn't I receive an email, or something from Paypal, or I believe it is GE Capial Bank that backs this, that said I had opened an account; and I could have immediately replied and saved many hours and much frustration?. Paypal needs a better security system...I never, ever give out my password or any  other info.  I'm wondering if my Social Secutiy number was needed to open this account.

Just wanted to warn and alert all Paypal users to be careful!!!

[Redhead41]

I had the same problem happen to me. I have never heard of this card and did not open one but someone else did with my info. Charged 1250.00 right away on a 1400.00 limit in a matter of days. I believe someone also had enough of my info. To print my credit report online. Hope this hasn't happened to a lot of people and won't happen again through Paypal!

[clemi28]

My mom just had this happen to her and she doesn't even have a paypal account. Also, she doesn't even live in the US. My aunt recently recieved a statement for Smart Connect under my mom's name (name was partially wrong). It was for two charges in San Jose, which added up to ~$1100. Not quite sure how they got her information. I don't even think my mom has a social security because she is not a US citizen. 

[Temp20200521c]

Looks like $1364.00 worth of goods bought  billed to me and this Smart Connect bill is going in the trash. One interesting thing is, it has a transaction date of 12/12.

[jkhuner]

I sympathize: I just spent over an hour clearing up the same kind of mess on my account. Having returned after two weeks away, I find in my regular postal mailbox:

1. An invitation to open a PayPal SmarConnect account

2. A monthly PayPal SmartConnect account statement, closing date the day after I left, for total of $677 on (non-itemized) purchases, which of course I never made since I didn't open the account (nor would I have wanted to as I don't need any more such accounts).

  Interestingly, I also found on my voice mailbox (home telephone, from shortly after I left), an inquiry from Walmart.com asking me to call back to verify some attempted charges (when I had never made any).

   It turned out that these charges Walmart.com had indeed allowed were on this fraudulently opened PayPal SmartConnect account.  Fortunately, my regular online PayPal account seems untouched (SO FAR!).

   What disturbs me is that someone must have hacked into these communications from PayPal before I could have received them in any case, since all the activity was before I left, and Paypal's monthly bill came in a couple of days later. In other words some one opened the account immediately after Paypal created space for the account but before I was notified of the offer. So it seems that it must be someone within Paypal itself who is originating the fraud by using or passing along the private information.

     Of course, Walmart.com is canceling the charges, and Paypal is obliterating the SmartConnect account and the charges, but who's paying for this fraud? Ultimately all of us Paypal users and all Walmart.com shoppers, of course. And who was there trying to prevent the fraud? Their offices seem to respond only after the fact.

       I don't know what safeguards PayPal has in place to make sure accounts aren't fraudulently opened, but I would guess it's only that the person opening them needs to verify address and social security #. So I took Paypal's advice and notified the credit bureaus (at 888-397-3742  to put a (temporary!) flag on my social security number;  this means they will double-check (by phone) if anyone tries to open another account using my identity.

  I recommend that we all help by agreeing with these vendors and card agencies to make it as difficult as possible for anyone (including us) to open a credit account of any kind. Maybe legislation requiring such businesses to disclose their fraud rates would be a good idea. We could comparison-shop and only get card accounts from those who have the best fraud-prevention records. After all, in my case Walmart.com or others apparently allowed $677 in fraudulent charges to go through, even after lack-of-verification by telephone.

[OlgaT]

The same thing happen to me: someone opened a Paypal Smart Connect in my name, I gott a bill on Christmas Eve for a Pyapal Smart Conect for $825... What the **bleep**???

Okay, I called their customer service department the next day and they told me that they will take care of it and recommended that I called the Credit Beuraus, which I DID.

Anyway, the total amount charged was $1164 or something like that... very close to the limit of $1200.

I called them today and:

1) requested a telephone # for the fraud department: they told me that they don't have a direct #... (which is pretty lame if you ask me).

2) I was on hold for almost 5 minutes to be transferred from the customer service department to the Fraud's department...

The response of the lady's in the fraud department to my request to provide me with a full report how someone opened an account in my name, what information was used to create an account, etc. told me that the only thing they can provide me with is a copy of the bill... After I told her that what she is telling me is against the Federal Law and I have right to the requested information and asked her to spell he name she put me on hold (without my permission to do so, may I add) and she didn't come back for about 10 minutes... At that point, PayPall lost me as a customer. Sorry to say, but I am canceling my Paypal account and will never do anything with this company ever again in my life.

I just want to share a couple points:

1) This new credit card was never linked to my real Paypal Account. If I have a PayPal cutsomer who is opening a line of credit with me, wouldn't I want to send them a "thank you" email and to add they credit card account to their regular PayPal account???  Wouldn't that be the first thing to do? I don't see anything associated with this new fraud credit line on my Paypal account... WHY? Why you allowed someone to use my name and you even didn't even email me to notify me about it? Why PayPal was stupid enouth not to link this nes account to my regular Paypal account?

2) Just an exaple of a company who really cares about their consumers: I have a Wellsfargo credit card and when I make "out of line" purchases in their fraud department's opinion, they  calls me to make sure I actually made those purchases and my credit card wasn't stollen.  They call me!!!!.... Here, with PayPal,  I have 3 charges $275 on the same day, and no one got alarmed?? Was a situation of someone making 3 purchases on the same day, same amount suspisious to you???

The answer to this question is here: PayPal **bleep**.

I am a business owner and I was thinking about processing all my company's puchases by credit card via PayPal. This is no longer an option for me. I am done doing any kind of business with PayPal.

Customer service suicks +Fraud departments **bleep** = The company **bleep**.

Sorry Ebay: I used to buy stuff from you using my PayPal account: that is no longer the case.

I just want you, PayPal owners to know, that this is NO WAY TO DO BUSINESS. We, your customers, trusted you and you broke our trust BIG, HUGE time.

There was definitely some security glitch in the PayPal's system that their customer's personal information became uccessible to the BADguys. I believe the least PayPal can do to "kind of safe its face" in this situation is stop hiding, come out and apologize to its customer's whom identities got stolen because of the use of the PayPal's services and to offer those folks who suffered because we trusted PayPal a free access to an identity protection program, credit check program, etc. It is not our, your customers' faults, that you cannot protect our information.

If you don't want to disapper from the face of this planet because you will have no customers - let me make sure you understand -0000000000000- customers, you, PayPal need to do your best to make things right for those whom you hurt.

Comapanies who use Paypal credit card processing services as the only option of payment: If there are two similar companies providing similar serices and one uses PayPal and another doesn't... Sorry, you are off my list to be doing business with even if you are much better than your competitior.

I am usually not that mean but this whole situation upsets me greatly: PayPal's carelessness costed me my name!

Olga