Paypal

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Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2007 10:07 am

I purchased an item on Ebay and tried to pay for it using Paypal.
Up until now I have never had any problems with Paypal (although to be honest I don't use it that often, and only to pay for items).
Now I got the message that my account was "limited". When I asked them what was going on I got the reply that they had "recently reviewed my account and suspect that it may have been accessed by an unauthorised third party".. and therefore limited the access
They instructed me to go to their site, change password, change security question, and then send a copy of a utility bill....
When changing my password I also had to re-enter my credit card number.....
Could this be a new phishing technique? Maybe I'm just being paranoid.

Baiting Guru Joined: 08 Jul 2004 Posts: 11857 Location: UK

Yes, it's probably a phishing email, the way to tell is, they gave you a link to their site in the email, when you hover your cursor over that link, what does the url say in the status bar, I imagine it will not be th real PayPal url, more likely, something like:

http://206.555.xxx.xxx/xxxxxxxxxx

Or a fake url that looks a lot like the PayPal one.

Never click links sent to you in emails, only ever type the name of the website in to your browser, that's the only way you will know for sure that you are on the real PayPal site.

Can you post the complete email you received.

Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2007 10:58 am

Below is a copy of the original email.
The thing is that I accessed Paypal via the Ebay website when I tried to pay for an item. When I was told my PP account was "limited" I contacted PP via their website... So I didn't receive an unsollicited email....

PS : when I hover over the link the URL is www.paypal.com....

Dear XXXX,

Thank you for contacting PayPal. We apologise for the delay in
responding to your email concerning the limitation stopped on your
Paypal account.

We undsrestand you desappointment regarding the limitation stopped on
your PayPal account.

Your account has been limited because we have recently reviewed it and
suspect that it may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party.
Protecting the security of your account and of the PayPal network is our
primary concern. Therefore, as a preventative measure, we have
temporally limited the access to your account.

To resolve this issue and regain full access to your account, please
follow the instructions below:

.Change Password
.Change Security Questions
.Fax Proof of Address for your Address to the number 070 359 906.

If you need to fax in information regarding limited access:

1.Log in to the PayPal account at https://www.paypal.com/.
2.On the Account Overview page, click the "Resolution Center" subtab.
3.On the Resolution Center page in the "Your Account is Limited" box,
click "fax coversheet."
4.Fill in the necessary information, print out the cover sheet and fax
it with your other documents. We will send an email to confirm that we
received your documents as soon as the fax enters our system.

We also inform you that you can upload your proof of address following
those steps:

1. Log into your account at https://www.paypal.fr/
2. Go to the Resolution Center, and then click "Resolve" in the
Action column of your limitation.
3. Select a method to submit your documentation.
4. To upload your documentation, click "Browse."
5. Select the file you want to attach.
6. Click "Open."
Give the file a recognizable title.

� The title should not include more than three numbers
� You may provide a description of the file you are sending, up to
100 characters
� Click "Attach this File"
� Information about your file will appear under the Attachments
box. In the Attachments section, you can preview the file or delete it
� Repeat steps 1-3 as many times as required, up to a total file
size of 5000kb
� Click "Send Files to PayPal" to submit your files for review by
PayPal

We will review the status of your account and its restriction once the
required information received.

We are committed to making your PayPal experiences pleasant and
fulfilling.

Sincerely,
David

PayPal, an eBay Company

Copyright � 1999-2007 PayPal. All rights reserved. PayPal (Europe) S.�
r.l. & Cie, S.C.A. Soci�t� en Commandite par Actions. Registered Office:
5th Floor, 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449, Luxembourg, RCS Luxembourg B
118 349

Original Message Follows:
------------------------
Form Message
customer subject: When I try to pay for an Ebay item I get the message
"limited access prevents payment" or something
customer message: Which auction website are you using?: 'eBay'
Additional Information: 'I only use Paypal to pay for items purchased on
Ebay, and last month purchased an item and peid for it through Paypal
without any problem'

Master Baiter Joined: 04 May 2007 Posts: 139

~Bobo419,

PHISHING! Here's why:

PayPal would NEVER send an e-mail with this many spelling mistakes first of all. "undsrestand", "desappointment", "temporally". If I got an email like this and it actually turned out to be from PayPal, I'd cancel my account. People who can't even spell have no business dealing with my money.

PayPal's principal offices are in California, and they would NEVER have you fax ANYTHING to them, much less to a UK phone number, ESPECIALLY if they are telling you to go to the U.S. site, PayPal.com.

They gave you two different addresses, paypal.com and paypal.fr. These are both legit, but I would be very suspicious of this.

My advice is to go to https://www.paypal.com (type it in, I'm not linking it here) and make sure that Internet Explorer gives you a green address bar, or if you're using Firefox, that you get a yellow one. Both will have a lock icon IN THE ADDRESS BAR. paypal.fr and other regional sites are legit but have not yet been given the same level of Verisign authentication, and will show as white address bars with no lock. I would recommend that you not use them if you are a fluent in English. If there is a limitation showing in your Resolution Manager screen, call Paypal's Account helpline at 1-402-935-2050. It's a long distance call unless you're in Cali, but far cheaper than giving a phisher your credit card number. There's a small chance a sophisticated phisher may be hijacking your browser to send you away from PayPal, but they can't jack with your phone. Confirm with another human on the other end of the line the measures you are to take to reinstate your account.

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 3:07 am

Quote:

Fax Proof of Address for your Address to the number 070 359 906

This is a UK "follow me" number, meaning it can be redirected anywhere in the world. SYG has already pretty much nailed the other things that prove that this is phishing.

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 8:40 am

@SumYunGai : did what you said : accessed PayPal site by typing in www.paypal.com (indeed a green address bar), and my account is still limited. Paypal's main account may indeed be in the US, but I can remember receiving a message on my Ebay account that due to different tax laws etc, a branch was set up in Luxembourg (from which the email originated...)
@Slayerfaith : I live in Belgium and I think the 070 number is a tollfree number for Beglium... but not sure on that though....need to check that.

The thing is : I did not receive an unsollicited email telling me my account was limited etc... please log in, provide password, give cc number...

I never knew that my account with PayPal was limited until I tried to make a payment with it...
I didn't access the site via a link in an email, I accessed it via the link provided in my Ebay account....and when I then found that my account was limited, I contacted their support center via email...
If this is phishing, someone has hacked Ebay to provide a fake link (but I thought that would be a bit far fetched..) Still, the need to change my password, re-enter my cc details, change security questions, provide utility bills, combined with the bad spelling ... makes me apprehensive.

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 2:03 pm

Your account may well be 'Limited' unless you are verified.
Log on to paypal and follow the verification programme.
After that you are no longer limited.

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:09 pm

You beat me to it, Dirteh Razz