# Paypal Scam going 'round **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 23, 2003, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965 "2003-05-23T03:17:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/1 "2003-05-23T03:17:59Z")
I just received an email that looked very, very legit, supposidly from Paypal. It had the colors and everything, including a little blurb at the bottom like you usually find in official emails. It asks for your bank info, PIN (for verification), and your SS#. The addy it was sent from even reads as [paysecurity@paypal.com](mailto:paysecurity@paypal.com) I’ve reported it, but who knows if it’ll ever be stopped, so I’m just trying to get the word out… ---
**Author:** ![TVGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/82dd89/32.png) [@TVGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/2 "2003-05-23T03:19:50Z")
Hell, it probably WAS from PayPal - the biggest scam artists on the internet. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/3 "2003-05-23T10:22:20Z")
I’m very very wary with PayPal now; the other day I sent a payment to someone who had the Paypal payment stuff embedded into his own web page; I couldn’t bring myself to trust it this way, so I went direct to Paypal and sent it from there. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/4 "2003-05-23T13:15:00Z")
Yeah, I got something like that yesterday, asking for “information.” I checked the headers and it obviously didn’t come from Paypal. There was a link, but I think they screwed it up. I reported them to Paypal and my ISP. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/5 "2003-05-23T14:06:08Z")
There was a [recent thread in the pit about this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=184954). No big deal, Just keep your eyes open. ---
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/6 "2003-05-23T17:21:07Z")
**sailor** , thank you, I never visit the Pit, and I had no idea a thread had been started about it. Looks like I need to start popping in every now and then… ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/7 "2003-05-23T17:33:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mangetout \* > \*\*I’m very very wary with PayPal now; the other day I sent a payment to someone who had the Paypal payment stuff embedded into his own web page; I couldn’t bring myself to trust it this way, so I went direct to Paypal and sent it from there. \*\* It’s common to embed a Paypal button in a website – Paypal provides personalized buttons for merchants. Easy to tell if it’s a scam, too – if the website it takes you to doesn’t start with [https://www.paypal.com](https://www.paypal.com), quit right there. I’ve had nothing but good experiences with Paypal, personally. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2003, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/8 "2003-05-26T21:00:45Z")
WHOA! I just got lit up by this one, even after reading this thread. . . I input only my e-mail address and credit card number, thinking it was the real site, and got a 404 Message. **butrscotch** , thanks for the heads up. I immediately put my credit card on hold and tagged it with a new password, just to be sure. . . And I thought I was a veteran 'Net surfer. . . Tripler Show you how much I know. . . ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2003, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paypal-scam-going-round/176965/9 "2003-05-26T21:10:56Z")
I have to ask the question though. . . Did anyone ever get an e-mail to fax information in? I may have fallen for that one. :mad: Although, my information will change soon enough anyhow. . . Tripler The benefits of moving every two years. 😃