** Spoof / Phishing Emails - Tips on how to identify & stay protected **

PayPal_Siobhán
Moderator
Moderator

Due to the increase in Phishing /Spoof Emails being reported to PayPal I thought I would post a few tips on this topic that might help.

 

You’ll know that an email is not from PayPal when:

 

  • The email uses a generic greeting like ‘Dear user’ or ‘Hello, PayPal member.’ We'll always address you by your first and last name.
  • The email requests financial and other personal information. A real email from us will never ask for your bank account number, debit or credit card number etc. Also we'll never ask for your full name, your account password, or the answers to your PayPal security questions in an email.
  • The email asks you to provide the tracking number of a dispatched item, before you've received the payment into your PayPal account
  • The email includes a software update to install on your computer.

 

Here are some security tips to help you stay protected online:

 

  • Even if a URL contains the word 'PayPal', it may not be a PayPal webpage.
  • When using PayPal, always ensure that the URL address listed at the top of the browser displays as https://www.paypal.com. The 's' in ‘https’ means the website is secure.
  • Look for the 'lock' symbol that appears in the address bar. This symbol indicates that the site you are visiting is secure.

 

If you think you’ve received a phishing email, forward it to spoof@paypal.co.uk and then delete the fake email from your mailbox.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Siobhán 

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137 REPLIES 137

lmcc234
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

 

I recieved this email too. It looks very real. Thought it lloked dodgy mind but I did click on the link and it took me to a page for fly fishing. Didn't ask me for any password or anything and would never put them in through an email link never have even on real emails always go straight to paypal. Hopefully no body had hacked my account as i am having problems with funding my account and linking my bank account says it is already used on another account asked paypal to look into it for me. Just beware of the dodgy emails.

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PayPal_Siobhán
Moderator
Moderator

Hi there Imcc234,

 

I can confirm that this is a known spoof email and would advise that all suspicious emails are forwarded to spoof@paypal.com.

 

Just some advice for everyone!

 

You’ll know that an email is not from PayPal when:

 

  • The email uses a generic greeting like ‘Dear user’ or ‘Hello, PayPal member.’ We always address you by your first name and last name or the business name on your PayPal account.
  • The email requests financial and other personal information. For example, an email from PayPal never asks for the numbers of your bank account, debit or credit card, or driver’s license. We also don’t request your email addresses, your full name, your account password, or the answers to your PayPal security questions.
  • The email includes an attachment, a software update to install on your computer, or a hyperlink

Hope this helps!

 

Siobhan

 

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steven2011b
Contributor
Contributor

Hi I got this email today

 

We need your help resolving an issue with your account. To give us time towork together on this, we've temporarily limited what you can do with youraccount until the issue is resolved. We understand it may be frustrating not to have full access to your PayPalaccount. We want to work with you to get your account back to normal asquickly as possible. What's the problem? We want to make sure that no one has logged in to your account without yourpermission. Please take a moment to change your password and create new securityquestions. You should also take a look at your account information andrecent transactions. Make sure that your account information (address,phone number, etc) hasn't changed. You can do all of this by selecting theprofile link in the header on the Account Overview page. If you see a payment that you don't recognise, let us know by going to theResolution Centre. Click "Dispute a Transaction" to report an unauthorisedtransaction. Reference Number: PP-001-320-192-895 How you can help It's usually quite straightforward to take care of these things. Most ofthe time, we just need some more information about your account or latesttransactions. To help us with this and to find out what you can and can't do with youraccount until the issue is resolved, log in to your account and go to theResolution Centre. Yours sincerely

 

I have had a payment put on hold by paypal so I am assuming it is true. However when I go to change password/security questions on paypal homepage on my other account it keeps saying SORRY Sorry, an error occurred after you clicked the last link". - I need urgent help on this matter but phoning up has been no help, tried logging out and back in - clearing internet browsing cache etc , changed browser

 

Thanks in advance

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placemat
Contributor
Contributor

Hi, this is definately a spoof email. DO NOT click on any of its' contained links! The email is from the following sender...

 

[removed]

 

Always contact PayPal first to verify or even Google the spam email and see if anyone else is getting it.

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PayPal_david
Moderator
Moderator

Hi steven2011b,

 

It sounds as though the email you received may be a genuine PayPal email. The only way to be sure will be by checking your account but you have already tried this. When you are logging in to your account, you may have been asked to update your password and security questions. 

 

If you are receiving error messages on your account when you are trying to login, you should try contacting customer services directly in order for us to investigate the issue further on your behalf. This can be done by clicking the Contact Us icon at the bottom of any PayPal webpage. From here, you can then click the Call Us or Email Us option in order to get in contact with us.

 

I hope this helps,

 

David. 

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pgrred
New Community Member

I've had this appear twice in 2 days..

 

PayPal


information about your account:
Security Center 

Attention! Your PayPal account was limited! 

As part of our security measures, we regularly check the work of the screen PayPal. We have requested information from you for the following reason: 

Our system has detected unusual charges to a credit card linked to your PayPal account. 

Reference Number: PP-259-187-991 

This is the last reminder to log into PayPal, as soon as possible. Once you connect. PayPal will provide measures to restore access to your account. 

Once connected, follow the steps to activate your account. We appreciate your understanding as we work to ensure security. 

Due to the recent update of the servers, you are requested to please update your account info at the following link.

 

http://www.paypal.com





We appreciate your attention to this issue. Please understand that this is a security measure designed to protect you and your account. We apologize for any inconvenience .. 


Department review PayPal accounts

 
Copyright © 1999-2011 PayPal. All rights reserved.
PayPal FSA Register Number: 226056.
PayPal Email ID PP059

 

 

 

 

Is this SPAM... I have not replied or clicked any links.

The .com  address in link and no account name is suspicious enough.

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PayPal_Siobhán
Moderator
Moderator

Hi there pgrred,

 

I can confirm that this is a spoof email and was not sent from PayPal.

 

If you log into your PayPal account as you normally would you will be able to see if the account is limited.

 

You’ll know that an email is not from PayPal when:

 

  • The email uses a generic greeting like ‘Dear user’ or ‘Hello, PayPal member.’ We'll always address you by your first and last name or the business name on your PayPal account.
  • The email requests financial and other personal information. A real email from us will never ask for your bank account number, debit or credit card number etc. Also we'll never ask for your full name, your account password, or the answers to your PayPal security questions in an email.
  • The email includes an attachment, a software update to install on your computer.

If you think you’ve received a phishing email, forward it to spoof@paypal.com and then delete the fake email from your mailbox.

 

Siobhan

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Leslie21
New Community Member

Hi,

I got the same email!

 

The link is fake, the real address is an Ip address: 

 

[removed]

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TwilightMyst
Contributor
Contributor

 

I received this January 30th and because it went to my Spam folder, I

only found it this morning.  To me, it looks very real!

Although there is an attachment, I came here first to confirm this is indeed from PayPal...

I almost downloaded that file...but now, no way!

 

Thank you PayPal for the information here...

__________________________________

 

 

The attached message from PayPal
was determined by the Spam Blocker to be spam based on a score
of 19.0 where anything above 5.0 is spam.





#
Identity Issue #4453.3324.11Secure Transaction

Please complete the attached form to verify your Profile information and restore your account access.


Personal Information Profile

Make sure you enter the information accurately, and according to the formats required.
Fill in all the required fields.

Dear customer ,

As part of our efforts to provide a safe and secure environment for the online community, we regularly screen account activity. Our review of your account has identified an issue regarding its safe use. We have placed a restriction on your account as a precaution.

To lift the restriction we will require some further information from you.

If, once we review your further information and we're confident that the use of your account does not present a safety risk to our service and customers, we'll be happy to reinstate your account.

We have sent you an attachment which contains all the necessary steps in order to restore your account access. Download and open it in your browser. After we have gathered the necessary information, you will regain full access to your account.

We thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.


Very sincerely,
PayPal Review Department

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PayPal_lucy
Moderator
Moderator

Hey there, 

 

Thanks for providing this for the community to see. 

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