I've had a paypal account for many years, and I've had skype since it began, and I've always used paypal to pay skype.. Both are Microsoft properties, but rather bizarrely, paypal will not accept my skype number for authorization of transactions, and instead I use an email address.
A couple of years ago, I was not able to use paypal to send money to a friend and the notification said there was an unspecified problem with the account that prevented me from sending money, so I called and reached someone who told me everyone was sent home due to the pandemic so no one existed to explain and resolve the problem.
I've only used it for auto payment to skype since. But recently, I opened my paypal account to check on balance to see how soon I'll need to increase the balance to maintain skype payments, and all seemed in order for the moment.
Then yesterday a friend told me they were sick and had a fundraiser through paypal to avoid waiting 18 months through the UK's health service. I tried to send her money through the fundraiser using a credit card because not much in my paypal account, and entered my skype number and an email address, but it didn't work, and no explanation, but after awhile i got an email from Paypal saying
" You can no longer use paypal. After a review, we decided to permanently limit your account as we found potential risk associated with it. As a result, we can no longer offer paypal services to you."
I was using a debit card, not paypal for payment, had not logged in to paypal, and yet get that result. I understand that fraudulent fundraisers are common, but this is an old friend, no doubt. I have three bank accounts in the US where I'm a citizen, and I've lived most of the last ten years in Costa Rica as a tourist. All the US banks accept my skype number for verifications of transfers, although there were some years of struggling with skype message services, and skype has accepted my paypal payments always. I have a mobile/cell in Costa Rica that I've used with services around the world that don't accept skype numbers, but I use skype for international calls to save money. So i guess i will arrange an alternative payment method for skype, and perhaps I can open a new paypal account using that Costa Rican phone number since the info at the paypal site says I can't transfer the phone number I use on the old account to a new account.
I wonder if it makes sense to try to sort this out, or if Paypal and Skype are both just as endlessly troubled as they appear? I imagine that there are disgruntled people here, who will say quit, but I'm actually looking for a solution.
