Question
Do suppose this is a 'real' Paypal email? I've looked over the buyers eBay account and don't see anything amiss. This buyer was very late in paying so I was in no hurry to ship so the item is still sitting here.
Hmmmm all of these hoax emails have made me paranoid!
Dear (my first and last name),
We regret to inform you that you received funds from an account with
reports of fraudulent bank account use. The transaction listed below is
under review.
Transaction ID: xxxxxxxxxxx
Transaction Date: xx/xx/xx
Transaction Amount: $xx.xx USD
Buyer's Email: xxxxx*.com
Buyer's Name: XXXX XXXXX
To help in our investigation, please reply with the following information
within 7 calendar days:
1. The item that was purchased and the value of the item.
2. The name and address given to you by the buyer.
3. Whether or not the purchase has been shipped. (If you have not yet sent
the purchase, please do not proceed with the exchange.)
4. If already shipped, please provide the company used, date of shipment,
and tracking number, so that PayPal can verify the shipment and delivery
online. (For transactions of $250.00 USD or more, you must provide a
proof-of-receipt in the form of a signature from the buyer.)
5. Details of any other payments you sent or received that were related to
the above transaction.
6. Your day and evening phone numbers.
We would like to obtain as much information as possible about the above
transaction, including any email correspondence between you and the buyer,
in order to expedite this investigation. Solving fraudulent cases helps us
continue to offer PayPal as a secure and cost-effective payment service.
Thank you for your cooperation and assistance.
Thank you for using PayPal!
The PayPal Team
Thanks for any assurances that you can give me on this.
Answer
Well, PayPal will always address you by name, and there isn't any link to click on, that leads me to believe this is legit. That being said, it still doesn't hurt to forward it on directly to spoof*paypal.com and ask if it is indeed real.
Answer
Thanks Brodysmom. I read here all the time and think that I'm learning lots of valuable stuff but when it comes down to experiencing a problem personally then I forget everything I'm supposed to know!
There were 2 links in the email. One was my buyers email address and the other was in the footer of the email but it was just a warning from Paypal to type their url into my browser. Bingo! That alone should have led me to a conclusion plus the fact that they used my name!
I've sent it on to spoof*paypal.com ... thanks for the logical step reminder!
Answer
I'm pretty sure it is legit. Looks like the same email I received a month or so ago and PayPal did remove the funds from my account. Save yourself some grief and don't ship.
Answer
You may also wish to call PP directly.
PayPal Customer Service Agents are available to help you from 4:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST every day.
Call us toll-free at: 1-888-221-1161
We may only discuss an account with the account-holder. Please have the following information available when you call:
Your telephone number
Your email address
The last 4 digits of your credit card or bank account registered with PayPal
For security reasons, we must verify the above details before discussing any account-specific information.
Answer
If you go into your paypal account, there should be a bar acros the top for the "resolution center" or something that will let you know that there is a trnasaction under review.
Thanks,
Jill
Answer
Good old speedy Paypal ... it's now 6 hours later and still no reply to my question.
Boccafossil - Got the package sitting right here, it's not going anywhere until this is resolved!
FLvamp - Thanks for the number and the information, I've made note of it in case I need it later.
Jill - Thanks for that bit of information! Yep, there is an entry in my account saying that Paypal put a hold on the money.
It's not a large sum so I'm not too concerned. Actually, I had given up on seeing the payment since it had already been 14 days from the end of auction.
Again, thanks for all the help!
Answer
Your bidder has won 20+ auctions since yours, with a ballpark total of over $500.
If she decided to pay everybody all at once, the sudden flurry of activity on her credit card account may have led the issuing bank to shut it down until they verify that she is making the charges. Paypal uses the word "fraudulent" pretty loosely, I have noticed, when the parties involved are innocent.
On the other hand, your bidder has a few dark clouds in her history with a feedback rating of 90%. Time will tell.
You did well, holding the package. If she flakes out on all the oustanding bids she'll be gone soon enough
Good luck.