Got a strange text from Paypal?

[TDMac]

Hello and thank you for your assistance in advance. I got a strange text message from PayPal on my smartphone today after a friend sent me money. 

The text read:

<#> PayPal: This message is a notification that your account has been restricted for a while, because you have reached the limit of receiving or sending. Follow the steps below to restore access (link was included in the text).

I've never gotten any kind of message like this before. Is this legit or some kind of scam? I checked both my account and the resolution center and neither are showing any notifications. A friend was supposed to send money today though, which has not arrived. I might also mentioned the text came from a phone number originating in Michigan, not an 800 or 888 number. According to online searches it is a landline.

Has anyone had this happen, or is this something legitimately from Paypal?

Again, thank you for your help!

TDMac

[kernowlass · Accepted solution]

@TDMac 

If its a spoof then NEVER USE ANY LINK.

Firstly if the email/text addressed you as ''Dear Member'' / ''Customer'' / ''Client'' OR your ''email address'' then that confirms its a spoof as paypal would address you by your full name eg Dear John Smith.

Secondly if there was a link OR attachment in that email/text to ''cancel'' any transaction or ''confirm'' any details then again it would be a spoof.

If there was a problem with your account Paypal would not ask you to click on an unsafe link in an email or by downloading an attachment, they would direct you to log in normally and go to the resolution or the message centre for more information.

More info here >>
https://www.paypal.com/us/selfhelp/article/how-to-spot-fake-emails-faq2340/2
https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/security/suspicious-activity

[TDMac]

@kernowlass thank you so much for your reply! I was thinking the same and did not entertain the link. It was just such a strange text, and I've still not noticed or found any report of this in my account, or in emails from PayPal. Thus I'm going to ignore it and keep it moving. Thank you for confirming what I was thinking! Kudos 😊