Important: Required Software Update for PayPal Here Card Reader (UK merchants)

PayPal_Olivia
Moderator
Moderator

Hi everyone,

 

At PayPal we strive to always provide you with seamless and secure methods to accept payments for your business. As part of this, we periodically need to make updates to our software.

 

We would like to inform you that on Tuesday, 9th July 2019 we will be pushing a required software update for the PayPal Here Card Reader for UK merchants*.

 

Why is this update required?

With the rapid growth of contactless payments in the UK, we’re updating our card reader software to deliver even more reliable payment experiences for your customers.

 

When do I have to make the update?

The update will be pushed on Tuesday, 9th July, 2019 starting at 02:00 AM BST. We highly recommend that you make this update prior to opening for business and conducting sales to ensure that you don’t experience an interruption in the ability to accept payments. 

 

What do I need to do?

Before using PayPal Here to accept payments on Tuesday, 9th July, please follow these simple steps:

  1. Log out from app you use to take payments and re-log in again; action this step even if you are already logged in.
  2. Make sure that your mobile device or tablet are paired with your PayPal Here Card Reader.
  3. Follow the prompts that will guide you through the software update.

 

The process can take up to 10 minutes** and we recommend you use a Wi-Fi connection for a faster upgrade.

Before you begin the update, please ensure that your mobile device or tablet and card reader are charged and connected to a power source. While the update is in progress, do not minimise the app or perform any other touch-screen actions on your mobile device or tablet. After the update has completed you will be all set and can resume taking transactions.

If you have questions or concerns, our Customer Support team is ready to help. Please visit the following webpage: https://www.paypal.com/uk/smarthelp/contact-us and click on the “Call Us” button.

 

* This update will not impact M003 card reader users (white card reader)

** Depending on wi-fi connectivity

 

 

FAQs

 

I have opened the PPH App but do not see any update come through.

  1. Make sure you log out and log back into the app, to start an “active” session.

  2. Check whether the app is connected to the card reader via Bluetooth. This can be checked in the “Settings” of your mobile phone as well as in the App by clicking Card Readers > Find and Connect to Reader.

  3. Check whether the card reader is not already updated to the latest version. In order to check this, log into the PayPal Here App > Card Readers > click on the PPH card reader connected to the App at the top of the screen > check the “OS Version”. If the OS Version is “M000-OS-7-15” then the reader is up to date and does not need any additional action.

  4. If you still do not see the update at this point, it might be because you have you have a point-of-sale app  which only connects the reader to the device once a transaction is initiated. Therefore, you should log out and log back into your point-of-sale app as well as initiate a “test” transaction in order to prompt the update.

     

Can the update be postponed to a different time?

No, unfortunately the update will have to be completed once it is prompted in order to be able to continue to accept payments.

 

Why do I need to update my card reader? What will change?

This update will make the payment experience more reliable; nothing will change in the way the reader is operated or accepts payments. The updating process resembles previous updates already experienced, but given the expected running time (8-9 minutes), it is advisable to go through it before beginning the business day.

 

Can I perform any other activity on my mobile device while the update is taking place?

It is advisable that both mobile device and card reader are not used and plugged into a power source until the update is fully completed.

 

Does the update affect all mobile devices?

Yes, the update will affect both iOS and Android devices.

 

I use the PPH reader though a partner integration, do I still have to complete the update?

Yes, the update will be prompted to all PPH users with the newest version of the partner integration. The older partner integration (which is still used by Salmon, Worldline, BrightPearl and Predict Spring), though, will not prompt the update. In this case, if you use any of these integrations you should not connect your mobile devices directly to the PPH app, otherwise it might compromise the usability of the reader.

 

Will the update work if launched without a wi-fi connection?

Yes, the update can also be performed when the mobile device is connected to a 4G connection. Nevertheless, a wi-fi connection might be more stable and reliable to perform the update of the card reader.

 

Can the update be reversed?

No, once the update has been completed, it will not be possible to revert the card reader to an earlier version of the software. Even pressing the factory reset button will not restore the previous OS.

 

Olivia

 

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14 REPLIES 14

patwadd
Contributor
Contributor

I have been trying to do this PayPal Here update (9 July 2019) for three hours now. My phone and the reader both say 'Downloading 1/2' and that's it. I even shut everything down and started again - same result. I've also been trying to phone PayPal for most of that time and am just stuck on hold. I'm at my wits end so any help would be appreciated.

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Dne
Contributor
Contributor

The exact same thing with us. PayPal are very, very slow to help/resolve. Anyone sort this yet? 

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patwadd
Contributor
Contributor

Still no response from PayPal - not even an acknowledgement of my email. The problem hasn't been fixed, even after doing a full factory reset on my reader. Now I have 23 updates to download instead of 2 and it doesn't even get started. Anyone had an answer yet?

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Dne
Contributor
Contributor

This issue is now costing money.

 

Since the failed update, which never completes, our PayPal Here card reader no longer connects. Which means we can't take Contactless or Chip+Pin payments. So instead, we're forced to input the card information manually which actually costs MORE in fees.

 

PayPal's response? Nothing. And when we phone, we keep being told to try again with the update, to leave it on all night - this is the same advice three days in a row! The update doesn't complete!  What the actual heck PayPal. 

 

@PayPal_Ana @PayPal_Conor @PayPal_Fatima @PayPal_Gwen @PayPal_Harish @PayPal_Jo @PayPal_Olivia @PayPal_Preet @PayPal_Surya @PayPal_Usha

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PayPal_Olivia
Moderator
Moderator

Hi @Dne and @patwadd,

 

I'm sorry to hear that the download of the update stalled out at 50%. Our teams are looking into why this might happen. One thing to check for this would be the battery power on the device. If the device is at low battery, that may cause the issue.

 

If the battery power is not low and this is continuing to happen, please visit https://www.paypal-support.com and log in. Then click Contact Us to open a ticket to our technicians. In the ticket, please describe the problem that you're having, and if you can provide a specific time that you attempted the download and the stalling happened, the team can look at the logs and investigate what's happening.

 

I will continue to look into this from my end and let you know what I find out.

 

Olivia

 

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patwadd
Contributor
Contributor

The device and my phone were both fully charged - in addition, both were connected to a power supply as specified in the description of how to do the update. The update didn't stall at 50% - the download never started at all.

 

I will open a ticket.

 

Update - I cannot open a ticket as I get a blank login screen when I go to the 'Contact Us' page.

Perhaps you could do so on my behalf.

 

I started the update at approximately 16:30 BST on Friday 12th July 2019. I followed the screen instructions and all that was displayed, both on the card reader and my phone was 'Downloading 1/2'. I tried three times, powering the card reader and my phone off between attempts. Finally, I did a full factory reset on the card reader and tried again. The result was the same, except that the display now showed 'Downloading 1/23' as earlier updates need to be reloaded. At all times the devices were fully charged and connected to a power supply (direct USB connection to my PC, NOT via a USB hub, the first three times and direct to USB sockets on my domestic supply for the fourth attempt. In all cases I was using the original USB cables which I also tested.)

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PayPal_Olivia
Moderator
Moderator

Hi @patwadd,

 

I can pass this information on so the technical team has a little more information to work with. In order to have a direct line of communication with technicians, you would need to open a ticket directly. I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I recommend clearing your browser's cookies and cache or trying a different browser if you are unable to see the login page.

 

Thank you.

 

Olivia

 

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Dne
Contributor
Contributor

This update won't work for us? It just gets to 50% then stalls indefinitely. When trying to use the card reader, it won't let us connect so we're forced to use the manual input on the iPad device. Any suggestions?

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johnny2sheds
Contributor
Contributor

My update has failed as well, tried factory reset and reloading the app to my phone, now have 23 updates to perform and it still refuses to update. Raised a ticket with Merchant Services, no help there just a suggestion  that I try a newer device or an older one or a one with a different o/s, useless PayPal. I now have a card reader that is not worth anything and I have lost 2 weeks of events at my busiest time without card payments. I have a Samsung S5 and a contactless card reader (black). I was initially told that the fault lay with Android who provided PP with a code to enable the update but changed it 2 days before the update was due ( I don't recall if the PP person started with "Once upon a time....). I tried to contact customer services by email, apparently that facility is no operating at present and I do not wish to spend my time on the telephone complaining, I wanted a solution.

PayPal you have wrecked my opinion of you.

However after waiting long enough I have now solved MY problem, I have switched to iZettle, farewell PayPal Here

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