# Unauthorized Paypal transaction. A scam? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 21, 2025, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645 "2025-02-21T23:06:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2025, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/21 "2025-02-22T13:44:26Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > When I asked him to repeat it I heard a kid screaming in the background - or maybe a cat, or a chimpanzee, how the fuck do I know. I don’t doubt based on the rest of your post that you were dealing with a scammer that day. But I call legit customer service for legit US banks and legit US retailers and often hear kids and dogs in the background. WFH is real. Or the dull drone of 40 other people all speaking Hindi-accented English together in some dank warehouse in e.g. Bangalore. That is the reality of legit customer service in the USA today. So I would not use those features as clues suggesting legit or not legit. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2025, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/22 "2025-02-22T18:02:15Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I win a AAA travel kit pretty much every other day. I’ve got all kinds of neat free stuff piling up at Harbor Freight. 🤔 ---
**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:** [February 22, 2025, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/23 "2025-02-22T21:23:34Z")
As a set of general rules, nothing anyone sends you in an email should be taken at face value; nothing in an email is ever so urgent that it requires immediate action and emails that claim something bad has happened, and exhort you to click a link or phone a number _contained within the email_ should be treated with high suspicion. I’m not saying that there are never any genuine emails that look like this, only that, IMO, the best approach is to distrust by default. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2025, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/24 "2025-02-22T23:02:49Z")
I kind of miss the “you have a package in customs,” calls I used to get. I would try to think of something different every time. “Oh no. It isn’t my cocaine is it?” “Oh don’t worry, it’s just a set of human lungs. It hasn’t started to stink has it?” “Package? Don’t you mean packages? What the hell did you do with my shit, man?” ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/25 "2025-02-23T00:16:49Z")
“Where’s my small tactical nuke?” ---
**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:** [February 23, 2025, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/26 "2025-02-23T00:28:42Z")
I got an email about that just recently; I asked them the dimensions then expressed disappointment that there were only three ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/27 "2025-02-23T01:27:19Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Log into [paypal.com](http://paypal.com) by typing the URL and see if any transactions occurred. Don’t click any link in the email, do not call any number. That doesn’t appear to be their default fraud number (877-438-4337) which does not mean that this email is not legit. If your account is fine it’s ok to contact them to see if they want you to forward the email. But if the email itself is fraud, it’s not anything to worry about, it is in itself an attempt to get your info. Yep. > [@What\_Exit](#): > > Don’t call, use the PayPal site. Yep If you get a issues reported- like a scam or a fraud, always go to the home page, never the links or numbers in the email, or similar message. These go to my spam folder. > [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Either you’re blessed, or you have a very, very good spam filter. Yes to the 2nd. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/28 "2025-02-23T03:42:08Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > But I call legit customer service for legit US banks and legit US retailers and often hear kids and dogs in the background. WFH is real. I called one support person (maybe Comcast?) with a foreign accent where I could hear a rooster in the background. “Is that a rooster?” “You weren’t supposed to hear that.” ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/29 "2025-02-23T08:18:32Z")
PayPal scams I delete immediately, but I’ve been getting lots of Coinbase scams. I spamified them about five times before they stopped getting through. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/30 "2025-02-23T08:44:51Z")
Excellent! ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/31 "2025-02-23T19:21:03Z")
> [@Newtosite](#): > > I received this email today: Read your email carefully. The message you quoted is not from PayPal. It was a message added by the party who made the transaction, and they are trying to make it look like PayPal to get you to call the number. God only know what scam awaits if you call the number. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2025, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/32 "2025-02-23T20:54:27Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > But I call legit customer service for legit US banks and legit US retailers and often hear kids and dogs in the background. WFH is real. Yep. I worked as a consultant for the Federal Reserve bank, remote from home, and yes, sometimes had to talk with customers and once in a while they might have been able to hear a cat. So, yeah- work from home was a BIG thing during Covid and it is still here to an extent. Hearing a dog bark should not necessarily be a BIG red flag. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2025, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645/33 "2025-02-24T20:10:31Z")
I just got an email from Paypal about this- _How to spot email_ _scams quickly_ _As digital scams are getting more sophisticated, it’s important to learn how to spot common signs of fraud and report it to stay safe online._ _If you receive a communication – a call, text, or email – that you think may not really be from PayPal, don’t respond, share any personal information, click on any links or open any attachments. Simply forward it to [Phishing@paypal.com](mailto:Phishing@paypal.com) and delete it._… _Here are some simple tips to stay safe from scams and phishing:_ 1. _Be cautious if the email:_ - "Doesn’t use your full name and has a generic greeting - Has incorrect logos, design or looks strange - Contains suspicious website links - Includes attachments and software." 1. _Be wary of false urgency._ _Scams often create a false sense of urgency. If in doubt, log in to your PayPal account to check for urgent messages or notifications._ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unauthorized-paypal-transaction-a-scam/1014645.md?page=1)