No Mobile Signal where I live.

[Dee108]

I rarely get a mobile signal and you don't allow me to login any more ny answering security questions. So how do I log in??

[sharpiemarker]

@Dee108 

No wifi service via cable model/router?? Just your mobile phone data connection?

[Dee108]

Yes I have router/wifi. Sorry if this is a stupid question but how can I get an OTP code in a text message via wifi? Thank you.

[JSHARRIS]

I have the same problem.  No mobile signal, and my 'phone seems not to be able to receive text messages using WiFi, so as of now it seems I'm locked out from my PayPal account (just went to log in and it wanted to send a text message).

I had to change banks because of this, so is there any chance that PayPal could use some other means of authentication for those of us in areas with no mobile service?

[Dee108]

Just updating my experience with this. Unfortunately I got nowhere with PayPal when I emailed them twice about it. You either disable two factor authentication or close paypal account? Anybody works in Paypal reading this? Can you not sort? Please.

[56d24K]

Me too.  The assumption is that everyone either has

a. a mobile phone and signal where they live, or

b. a mobile phone that is modern enough to do wifi texting, or

c. enough cash to upgrade your mobile phone to one that does this.

I am sorry Paypal but I don't comply with a), b) or c). 

How can you help me and the others in the same boat as me?

[JSHARRIS]

I'm surprised at the lack of any useful response to this very real issue.  We live in a bit of the ~10% of the UK that cannot get any mobile reception.  My iPhone is 18 months old (purchased in March 2019), yet it seems there it cannot receive text messages over WiFi at all.  I have tried looking online for a solution to this but the option just doesn't exist int he phone settings to allow it.  I very rarely use my mobile phone, because we don't have a signal here, so it makes no sense at all to replace it for an even more expensive model that may well only get used a handful of times a year (and when I bought the iPhone I did so because I thought it might last me several years).

I use PayPal a lot, several times every week, and have been using it a lot more since Covid-19, because of the additional online shopping.  If PayPal are locking long-standing customers like me out, then that will be a big inconvenience, and will also lose PayPal business.

Is there any other option to solve this, that doesn't involve me having to spend hundreds of pounds on yet another new iPhone?

[Dee108]

@JSHARRIS

The only way around this problem is to disable two-factor authentication on the paypal account, then you will not need to receive a text to log in to the account. I know someone who did this and they are able to continue to use Paypal.

[JSHARRIS]

Thanks, it's what we're doing at the moment, but PayPal sent out an email the day before yesterday telling us that we must make sure there's a valid mobile phone number registered for 2FA.  My assumption is that this now means that PayPal will shortly stop working for anyone that doesn't have a mobile signal.

I've been looking for a workaround for this problem, that doesn't involve using a mobile phone, but PayPal don't make it easy!  I think there may be a way to use an alternative approved authentication method, one that is massively more secure than sending an SMS (which can easily be intercepted - using text messages for authentication is inherently insecure, it seems).  There are authentication apps, but there are also devices that can do the same thing, rather like the card readers some banks use.  Some of these use a special USB key, that can be used to generate the needed code, and these seem to work with a wide range of apps, all the usual things that anyone might need to securely log into.

Confirming that such a system will work with PayPal seems difficult.  PayPal seems to be a member of the body controlling this method of authentication, but until I can find clear evidence that such a thing will work with PayPal I'm reluctant to go down this path.  If I find a simple way to get around the need for PayPal to use a text message I'll update this thread (be nice if PayPal just made this information easy to access . . . ).

[Dee108]

I have transferred my phone number from Tesco mobile network to the Three network and now have wifi-calling and a continous one bar signal and can now use 2FA. There was no option for wifi calling with Tesco but as soon as the new Three sim card was in use the option was immediately available. I had searched on Google for which models of phone the Three network made it available and it was possible with the iPhone 6 model or higher.

I noticed the paypal 2FA setup page accepts third party authenticators as an alternative to SMS. If you google search “PayPal adds authenticator app as 2-step verification option” there’s more info. I understand these can be used instead of SMS one-time-passcodes.