CONSUMER CHAMPION

Be wary when using PayPal abroad

One of PayPal’s (www.paypal.co.uk) security checks when account holders make an online payment is to monitor unusual activity or use of the account. If PayPal spots suspicious activity, it sometimes temporarily freezes the account, leaving legitimate users frustrated. PayPal account holders need to be especially wary when using the service abroad. Some people have complained that after using PayPal while on holiday, they’ve returned home to find their account suspended and the payment reversed – because they made the payment from an IP address they’ve not used before. PayPal can capture the IP address of account logins and can build a pattern of behaviour if an account tends to log in from the same IP or group of IPs. Web User spoke to PayPal, which confirmed that using its service abroad can trigger the temporary freezing of an account. “If a user logs in or tries to send money from a location around the world that is unusual for the account – for example, if they were a British account holder and have transacted with PayPal for three years from a British IP only – then they try to log in from a holiday hotel room in Bali to buy a digital camera, this might prompt a security check for suspicious behaviour,” said a PayPal spokeswoman. Although this type of scenario can lead to an account being frozen, the spokeswoman said: “In most cases a user will be asked a few short security questions in order to ‘unfreeze’ the account so they can continue with their login.” These questions appear on-screen during the login process when the customer tries to make a purchase. Further advice on how to stay safe online when using PayPal for buying or selling on the internet can be found at www.paypal.co.uk/securitycentre.


Source of Information : WebUser February 11 2010