Well, I have never had any problems
with PayPal until earlier this month when I received the following
email... which I originally thought was one of those designed to get
you to send your information for identity theft. I've XXXXX'd out
my personal information, but it doesn't detract from the email itself.
Access to
your PayPal account has been denied because your name is similar to or
a match to an entry on the Office of Foreign Assets Control
Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. We are required to further
verify your identity. In order to regain access to your account, please
provide the following documentation:
1. A copy of government-issued photograph identification (i.e. passport,
driver's license).
2. A copy of a utility bill verifying your address
3. A copy of a document verifying your date and place of birth.
Please fax
the information to +1 303-395-2802, Attention: Compliance. The documents
may also be mailed to the following address:
PayPal, Attention: Compliance
P.O. Box 45950
Omaha, NE 68145
United States
Please
provide the requested information within the next 30 days. If this
information is not received within the next 30 days, your PayPal account will
be closed.
Please
include the email address listed on your PayPal account in all correspondence.
Sincerely, Jessika PayPal
Compliance Department PayPal, an
eBay Company
At first I thought that someone had
picked up my name from somewhere and are trying to get me to send my
personal info to that fax #. I just filed it with the other
humorous notes I get and forgot about it. A few days later I
tried to log into my PayPal account and got this message...
This account
has been permanently locked with a $0.00 CAD balance. All information
associated with this account has been blocked from the PayPal system
and cannot be registered with another account.
What the heck is this???? I
remembered the email I got and checked it again. Hmmm.... looking
more legit by the moment. From the PayPal website I sent a
request for information and got the following reply
Dear
XXXXXXXX,
Thank you for contacting PayPal.
Your account has been found in violation of international sanction
regulations. Any funds in your account have been locked. You can obtain
further information from PayPal about the status of your account at ofacappeal@paypal.com.
Please let me know if you need further assistance.
Sincerely,
Mary
PayPal Resolution Services
PayPal, an eBay Company
International sanction
regulations??? Huh??? Following the two supplied links, I
looked for my name to see what was up. The Bank of England site
does not have any matches to my last name at all. The OFAC site
has a list of names which a few people that match my last name, but no
one that matches my first name (not even close). Did they take
everyone whose last name matches one on the list and lock their
accounts?
I sent notes to both ebay and PayPal
asking how my name matches any on those lists. I also suggested
they reactivate my account as they are in error with this. It's
only been one business day since I sent the notes, so I'm still hopeful
I'll get some sort of reply. I've been checking around at other
sites, including http://www.aboutpaypal.org and was dismayed to read
all the problems people have encountered. Only time will tell how
this one turns out....
Timeline:
September 9, 2006 6:46 PM - Received initial email from PayPal.
September 12, 2006 11:55 AM -
Figured out I was locked out of my account and sent an email to
PayPal. Received the response seen above the next day.
September 18, 2006 7:45 PM - Sent notes to ebay (sent 2 by accident -
see below for result) and PayPal asking for
confirmation of account locking.
September 20, 2006 - Received this from ebay... At least he
acknowledged that something was up. Hello
XXXXXX,
Thank you for
writing to eBay's Customer Support. My name is Boris, I appreciate
the opportunity to assist you with your concern regarding your PayPal
account.
I realize the
urgency in this situation. However, please understand that although eBay
is affiliated with PayPal we cannot look into your personal
information related to that account. This is to safeguard the interest and
privacy of our members.
XXXXX, I
suggest that you contact PayPal Customer Service directly, in order to
resolve this issue. To reach PayPal Customer Service, log into your account
and send a secure email through the following Web page:
You can also
contact PayPal Customer Service Representatives by phone, toll-free, at
1-888-221-1161.
Again, thank
you for writing eBay. Should you have any other questions, concerns or
require further clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us
again. I wish you a prompt resolution to this matter.
Regards,
Boris A. eBay Customer
Support September 20, 2006 - And here's the second... even the ebay rep
thought it wasn't real... Dear
XXXXXX,
Thank you for
contacting us about email solicitations that are falsely made to
appear to have come from PayPal. The email you reported did not originate
from PayPal or eBay.
Emails such
as these are commonly referred to as "spoof" messages, and are sent in
an attempt to collect sensitive personal information. They do this by
asking the recipient of the email to reply to the message or click on a
link to a Web page requesting this information.
We are very
concerned about this problem and are working diligently to address the
situation. We are currently investigating the source of these emails
to take further action.
We advise you
to be very cautious of email messages that ask you to submit
information such as your credit card number or your email password.
Only enter your eBay password on pages that begin with https://signin.ebay.ca/. If you ever
need to provide information to PayPal, it should only be done once you
have logged into your account from the PayPal.com homepage.
If you have
any doubt about whether an email message is from PayPal, please
forward it immediately to spoof@paypal.com. Do not respond
to it or click on
any of the links in the email message. Please do not change the subject
line or edit the email in any way.
If you
entered personal information such as your password, banking information
or credit card number into a Web site based on a request from a
spoofed email, you need to take immediate action to protect your identity.
More information on the steps you should take can be found on the
"Protecting Your Identity" Help page. To access this page please click the
following link:
To help you
better protect yourself from fake eBay and PayPal Web sites, we have
developed a feature for the eBay Toolbar called "Account Guard." Account Guard
includes an indicator of when you are on an eBay or PayPal Web site or a
known spoof (or "phishing") site, buttons to report fake eBay Web
sites, and a password notification feature that warns you when you may be
entering your eBay password on an unverified site.
To learn more
about the eBay Toolbar with Account Guard go to www.ebay.ca and click on
"eBay Toolbar" at the bottom of the page
Once again,
thank you for alerting us to the spoof email you received. Your
vigilance helps us ensure that PayPal and eBay remain safe and secure.
Sincerely,
Lottie eBay.ca
Customer Support
... still waiting on reply from PayPal.
.... Feb 14, 2007.... well haven't heard from anyone and my account is
still locked out. Guess my eBay days are over.... if I really had
to, I could get my wife to set up a Paypal account (she's got a last
name quite different from mine). But I've been left with a bad
taste from the whole experience.... and have no real interest in
returning.