{"id":386,"date":"2021-11-01T19:59:42","date_gmt":"2021-11-01T19:59:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/?p=386"},"modified":"2022-01-01T17:35:33","modified_gmt":"2022-01-01T17:35:33","slug":"fake-paypal-notification-emails","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/","title":{"rendered":"Spot Fake PayPal Notification Emails (Explained)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>When you\u2019re selling on an online marketplace like eBay or Amazon, you need to be aware of fake PayPal notification emails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These fake PayPal payment confirmations falsely state that the buyer has paid&nbsp;for the item. The email is faked to look as if it comes from PayPal or the marketplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_63 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-660198ced071e\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-660198ced071e\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#What_Do_Fake_PayPal_Notification_Emails_Look_Like\" title=\"What Do Fake PayPal Notification Emails Look Like?\">What Do Fake PayPal Notification Emails Look Like?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#Fake_Emails_May_Also_Include_Phishing_Attempts\" title=\"Fake Emails May Also Include Phishing Attempts\">Fake Emails May Also Include Phishing Attempts<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#Telltale_Signs_Of_Fake_PayPal_Confirmation\" title=\"Telltale Signs Of Fake PayPal Confirmation\">Telltale Signs Of Fake PayPal Confirmation<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#How_To_Defend_Against_Fake_PayPal_Payment_Confirmation\" title=\"How To Defend Against Fake PayPal Payment Confirmation\">How To Defend Against Fake PayPal Payment Confirmation<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#Avoid_%E2%80%9CPayment_on_Hold%E2%80%9D_Fake_Emails\" title=\"Avoid \u201cPayment on Hold\u201d Fake Emails\">Avoid \u201cPayment on Hold\u201d Fake Emails<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#When_Sellers_Are_At_Fault\" title=\"When Sellers Are At Fault\">When Sellers Are At Fault<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/#Beware_Of_Buyers_Who_Avoid_Cash_On_Delivery\" title=\"Beware Of Buyers Who Avoid Cash On Delivery\">Beware Of Buyers Who Avoid Cash On Delivery<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Do_Fake_PayPal_Notification_Emails_Look_Like\"><\/span>What Do Fake PayPal Notification Emails Look Like?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The sender will look official (e.g. <a href=\"mailto:payments@payal.com\">payments@payal.com<\/a>). &nbsp;The email will probably contain authentic-looking logos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Often the subject and body text will be very similar to the official text that a Seller is used to receiving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The situation you want to avoid is shipping them the item and discovering too late that you haven\u2019t been paid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Fake_Emails_May_Also_Include_Phishing_Attempts\"><\/span>Fake Emails May Also Include Phishing Attempts<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Simply sending unpaid items is possibly the \u201cleast worst\u201d outcome of this scenario.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The fake email may go to some lengths to entice the Seller to click on embedded links or graphics in order to \u201cre-submit\u201d their PayPal or marketplace details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This link will take the Seller to a webpage that looks like PayPal or whatever. Unfortunately, it may be a phishing page, designed to obtain your username and password for further malicious theft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Telltale_Signs_Of_Fake_PayPal_Confirmation\"><\/span><strong>Telltale Signs Of Fake PayPal Confirmation<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are some other telltale characteristics to watch out for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The buyer insists on PayPal when you offer bank transfers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If the Seller usually takes payment direct to their bank account, the Buyer will insist that PayPal is used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why? Because PayPal genuinely sends email notifications of payments. Your bank account does not, so you\u2019re more likely to notice that something is wrong with an email faked from your bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are reports of scammers sending emails purporting to come from their own bank saying that money has been transferred to your account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is less popular with scammers, as sellers may be more suspicious of, what is for them, an unusual message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The buyer asks for your PayPal email or a money request<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Many sellers report that the buyer explicitly asks for their PayPal email. Alternatively, the buyer makes a PayPal Money Request (which goes to their email).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a red flag. It is moving the transaction outside of the online marketplace trading and messaging system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The scammer wants the PayPal email because Sellers are accustomed to receiving funding notifications to *that* email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why doesn\u2019t the scammer simply send their fake email through the marketplace messaging system?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some marketplaces simply won\u2019t allow external links to be included in messages sent within their system. Some marketplaces won\u2019t allow email addresses to be mentioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They will monitor for anything that looks like evidence that trading is taking place (or being encouraged to take place) outside their marketplace, and will move to ban both Buyer and Seller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So the scammer needs the Seller\u2019s PayPal email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Cloaking the request for an email<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The buyer may not baldly ask for your PayPal email. To avoid suspicion, they may camouflage their intent&nbsp;in a request for other information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Often, more photographs or requested, or a separate invoice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As many marketplaces won\u2019t allow mention of email addresses in their messaging systems, the scammer has to be a bit creative here. For example, if the Seller helpfully sends an invoice \u201cfor their records\u201d, it may include an email and phone number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Scammer will make contact using these details, and request the PayPal email to complete payment. Once they have the email, that false notification is sent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_To_Defend_Against_Fake_PayPal_Payment_Confirmation\"><\/span><strong>How To Defend Against Fake PayPal Payment Confirmation<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The best defense against this scam is for Sellers to check their PayPal accounts to verify that they have been paid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Don\u2019t click on links within emails to go to PayPal, remember the cautionary note about phishing.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Avoid_%E2%80%9CPayment_on_Hold%E2%80%9D_Fake_Emails\"><\/span><strong>Avoid \u201cPayment on Hold\u201d Fake Emails<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To counteract sensible Sellers checking their PayPal account, scammers will use some additional sophistication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another fake email will arrive, purporting to be from the marketplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This one states that the marketplace (e.g. eBay) is holding the funds until the Seller emails the tracking number of the item to the Buyer. Of course, in order to provide the tracking number, the Seller has to go ahead and ship the item!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is completely fake. <a href=\"http:\/\/ebay.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">eBay<\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Amazon<\/a> never hold funds in this way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This email takes several forms. Here is one example from 2016. This is a double-hander, the Seller got two emails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p><em>You have funds of X pending to be credited to your account. When we receive the Tracking Number from the buyer via email, your account will be credited immediately.<\/em><\/p><cite>Example of Fake PayPal Notification<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The buyer followed up the email above with this one:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p><em>Please send me the Tracking Number, so I can send it to PayPal, thank you.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"When_Sellers_Are_At_Fault\"><\/span><strong>When Sellers Are At Fault<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Sometimes, the Seller is not a faultless victim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When contacted by the scammer, the seller may decide to keep the transaction outside the online marketplace to avoid fees. That is one reason to voluntarily give up one\u2019s PayPal email!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You may have jumped into the fishing net by doing this!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Beware_Of_Buyers_Who_Avoid_Cash_On_Delivery\"><\/span><strong>Beware Of Buyers Who Avoid Cash On Delivery<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Obviously, as the fake notification scam depends on payment via <a href=\"http:\/\/www.PayPal.com\">PayPa<\/a>l, the buyer has a problem if the seller uses Cash On Delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the seller\u2019s preferred method is Cash on Delivery then the scammer must convince the seller to switch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This usually involves some cock-and-bull story that puts the scammer all at sea (literally).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are a few\u00a0examples reported by sellers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><em>I work offshore as an instructor on an oil rig.<\/em><\/li><li><em>I am an oceanographer.<\/em><\/li><li><em>I\u2019m a Marine contractor at sea.<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>But not every scammer is a jaunty sailor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This poor dude had other problems: \u201c<em>sadly I can\u2019t come personally to collect due to my hearing loss and I\u2019m just recovering from heart surgery so I\u2019m home-bound.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In his next email, the unfortunate fellow\u2019s leg had fallen off (I\u2019m making this part up!).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you\u2019re selling on an online marketplace like eBay or Amazon, you need to be aware of fake PayPal notification emails. These fake PayPal payment confirmations falsely state that the buyer has paid&nbsp;for the item. The email is faked to look as if it comes from PayPal or the marketplace. What Do Fake PayPal Notification &#8230; <a title=\"Spot Fake PayPal Notification Emails (Explained)\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/fake-paypal-notification-emails\/\" aria-label=\"More on Spot Fake PayPal Notification Emails (Explained)\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,16,9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/386"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=386"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/386\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":459,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/386\/revisions\/459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}