Paypal

[NikonNellie]

I am also an infrequent user for PayPal purchases and never had a problem. I have now had about 4 emails telling me that my account is restricted and I should update my details. I have just ignored them as I think they are definetly a scam. I have actually made a purchase after I have received one of these emails and I had no problem using my PayPal account.
I would contact PayPal by phone if possible and confirm whether it is a scam or not.

[zoley]

The OP has been to his legitimate PayPal account via the web and found the same requirements there. This is not a scam. It is a result of much tighter government controls on financial institutions under the guise of preventing money laundering and payments for illegal goods, etc. Read the PayPal T&C and recent policy and you'll see that is the case. I have already been through this miserable process and hope to never have to go through it again!

If you want the money you have no choice but to comply. Furthermore, if you don't supply ALL of the documents quickly enough, those you may already have uploaded will go out of date and become useless for the process. It's a major pain in the butt but what's the alternative?

Of course you don't send anything to them via email. Of course you should change your account password regularly, too. As for getting your identity, correct me if I'm wrong but don't they already have your bank account and credit card details? Unless you have a security clearance for some high-level security government body, what else could they be after?

I sympathise with your dilemma but don't let government red tape leave you paranoid. It'll drive you crazy enough without that as well!

Thank You, Who Do.

My original post was to see if anyone had the same experience and if they had, how they dealt with it. I was always pretty confident that I was dealing with Paypal and not a scammer. I will supply the documents, all FOUR that they require as I don't see any other way I can retrieve MY money that I payed them a commission to make sure the transaction went through smoothly. They certainly do have all my bank and credit card details and more proof of ID than my bank originally requested, go figure.

[mongo]

When Mongo read the list of info requested he instantly became alarmed that this may be an identity theft attempt. Mongo would rather give up Paypal than ever give that information !

Only a few moths ago Mongo started a post about an attempted scam using Paypal which Mongo reported to Paypal and they confirmed that, yes, it was a scam attempt. So it does happen. Best defence is good common sense and a questioning nature !

[ktoopi]

I am also an infrequent user for PayPal purchases and never had a problem. I have now had about 4 emails telling me that my account is restricted and I should update my details. I have just ignored them as I think they are definetly a scam. I have actually made a purchase after I have received one of these emails and I had no problem using my PayPal account.
I would contact PayPal by phone if possible and confirm whether it is a scam or not.

Yes this is definitely a scam Narelle....I get the same emails ALL the time and have contacted Paypal about them in the past and they confirmed it was a scam!

[ameerat42]

Well, in the (dark) light of the foregoing, one could almost wish this were ONLY a scam.
Given all the warnings of ID theft etc, it is DRACONIC of PP to ask for such stuff. From memory, I had to provide something
(rather) less when I joined, and CERTAINLY NOT passportery.

I wonder what the (?Banking Indsustry) Onbudsman's views would be? Maybe worth a quick call.
Am(squirming a bit).

[dulvariprestige]

I frequently get emails about my paypal account, I never follow any of the links, I always enter their address into my browser and check for updates or alerts for myself, and there's only ever been two alerts that were real, even when someone sends me money, I login through my browser to see if the money is actually there.

[aussie girl]

I had a phone call the other day from a life saving group. I had bought raffle tickets from them previously. They were having another raffle and you could win a house for $2 ticket. The person asked if I would be willing to buy a book of tickets, $50 $70 or $100 book, and told me that I could pay for the tickets over the phone if I wanted to, just supply BSB no and account number, or via a credit card. I didn't have that info with my anyway, so asked if I could have the information sent out to me. She advised that the group was trying to reduce costs which is why they preferred direct debit to postage. I told her that I would be willing to pay for a book via a cheque, so asked if she could send the book of tickets out to me. She said that they dont do that but she would send me an email with the details and the website of the company. She even advised that she would give her name and a phone number so that I could ring and verify that she was from this lifesaving group. She read back my email address to me which was correct, but to date, I have not received an email from them. Must give the lifesaving group a ring and ask if they have a house lottery going at the moment. I was not sure if it was genuine or not, but was certainly not going to give her my bank details!!!