We dont have any personal grudges against PayPal, but my personal experince with PayPal and based on the opinion of many of my colleagues, friends and family, we are writing this blog post that will highlight why PayPal is a scam and why you should avoid using it.
Is PayPal a scam?
Yes, PayPal is a big-time scam, and we will tell you why. It might not be a scam for the users who are using it from the USA and European countries, but for users from Asian countries like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, PayPal is a big-time scam.
Recently, one of my PayPal account to permanently restricted by the PayPal team without any reason. The account has been flagged off. I was using this PayPal account for 2 years, and then suddenly I got the following message on my account.
Based on this email, I tried contacting the PayPal team via phone, social media and thought their resolution centre. Their entire customer support is listless, and they won’t even entertain you properly. I was asked about a few documents, details about my transaction and my personal government ID, which I submitted rightfully to PayPal.
Even after verification, they permanently decided to restrict my account and keep my funds on hold for 180 days.
I tried creating a new PayPal account from my other email ID, but the result was the same. Each time I tried creating a new PayPal account, it was getting permanently restricted.
I did a bit of research on social media and found that this is not only happening with me but with many of my colleagues, friends and other users who are based in India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and other Asian regions.
Is there a scam going around PayPal?
Yes, there is a scam going around PayPal, and PayPal is cheating users from India and other Asian countries like Pakistan.
I am sharing some of the screenshots which will prove that PayPal is a scam company and you should never be using it.
——————————————————————————————
——————————————————————————————-
————————————————————————————————
This is really a wakeup call for everyone who are using PayPal. I personally think it is time to switch to Wise or Payoneer for smooth and easy transfer for funds from other country to your domestic bank account.
Based on my research, I personally found that PayPal has restricted the accounts of users not only from India but from other European countries too. You can check the above screenshots for the proves.
Why PayPal is a scam, and you should never use it?
1.They will never tell you real reason for account deactivation
One of the major frustrations with PayPal scams is that they will never tell why the reason for your account getting restricted, either permanently or temporarily. They will just inform you by email that your account is getting restricted for life and you will no longer be able to use it.
Even if you try reaching out to their team from the resolution centre or via call, they will not respond. And if they respond, they will say “Our decision is final and your account will stay permanently deactivated”
The nail in the coffin is: You cannot even delete your account once it is deactivated for life or on a temporary basis. Your funds will be locked in and your critical bank information or card details will be kept with PayPal for life. You cannot even remove your bank or card details from your account once it is deactivated.
That is the reason why I am not recommending anyone to use PayPal from now. Start looking out for some options like Wise or Payoneer.
2. Pethetic customer support
The customer support for PayPal is the worst. First of all, they don’t have any live chat support like Wise. Secondly, their resolution centre works very slowly and takes 2-3 days to respond to any query or case created by the account holder. On top of that, they will not give you any valid reason or explanation regarding your account being banned or restricted.
Although they have a customer support phone number, which is toll-free. However, the call support is outsourced to third-party BPO companies, and you cannot expect to get a perfect solution from them.
If something happens to your account, then you are on your own. Don’t expect PayPal’s support team to help you out.
3. Too many delays in response
Reaching out to PayPal’s customer support team can be a daunting and frustrating task. Even if you reach out to them via email, chat or call, their replies are slow, especially when it comes to dealing with account restriction-related issues.
After you raise a ticket via the resolution centre, it will take 3-4 days to get an initial response. If your account is restricted on a temporary basis, their team will ask for 3-4 documents like government id, proof of goods sold, receipts from the supplier, transaction details and how your business works.
Even if you submit all the documents carefully, their team takes 3 days to review everything. And when the final decision is taken, it won’t be in your favour.
This extended back and forth can be frustrating for users who rely only on PayPal for getting their funds. Overall, the experince is very bad with PayPal, and the company really needs to pull up its socks.
4. Payment is kept on hold for 180 days
Another scam by PayPal is the holding of funds for 180 days and charging a fee if your account is permanently deactivated. This has happened to me twice and the experince was really frustrating. I discussed the same issue with many of my colleagues, and they all faced the same issue.
This mostly happens due to not following PayPal’s guidelines or some policy-related concern. However, I feel this is a scam by PayPal. First of all, PayPal will never tell you why they are holding the funds for such a long time or the reason for permanent account deactivation.
For freelancers and small businesses, this delay can hamper their careers and businesses as it directly impacts the cash flow and daily operations. This can also be a mental breakdown for someone who is on the mercy of PayPal.
That’s why I am recommending that anyone not to use PayPal.
5. Huge commission and fees
Scammers lure users with promises of huge commissions or high fees for simple tasks. They claim you can earn large amounts quickly but often require upfront payments or deposits. After payment, they disappear. Always be cautious of unrealistic earnings, verify offers, and never pay to receive commissions or jobs.
6. Cannot create another account
Once your PayPal account is permanently limited, you cannot create a new PayPal account never in your life. All your details, including your name, phone number, and government ID, are locked in PayPal’s system, and they will never allow you to create an account with those same details if they found your account was limited previously.
If you try to open your account with new or modified details, your account will be flagged off again.
Even if you call their customer support, they will not help you and say, “You cannot create a PayPal account ever”
Because of this, once your account is deactivated, you cannot reuse your previous credentials or use them to create a new account.
The only solution will be to create an account from your friends and family and get your money in their account, or you should consider using other platforms like Wise or Payoneer, which are much better.
7. The account opening process is too complicated
Even the new account opening process at PayPal is too complicated, especially if you are from India or some other Asian countries.
First of all, you cannot accept Payments from your PayPal personal account. You need to convert your personal account into a business account, which requires verification.
If you are from India, you need to have your bank account linkedin, pan card submitted and done with the video KYC, which is almost like a joke.
Even if you complete all the process, their team will surely ban your account if they find you have created another account with the same email, phone number or government ID.
Can PayPal be trusted?
No, PayPal cannot be trusted.
PayPal’s customer support can be slow and often frustrating to deal with. After raising a ticket, it may take 2–3 days just to receive an initial response. If additional documents are requested, the review process can take another 3–4 days, delaying resolution further.
In many cases, the final outcome may not be in the user’s favor, which adds to the dissatisfaction.
Another major concern is fund holding. PayPal may keep your funds on hold for up to 180 days due to internal reviews or policy-related issues. During this period, your money remains inaccessible, even if you have already delivered your services.
This can severely impact freelancers and small businesses who depend on steady cash flow.
Additionally, once an account is deactivated or permanently limited, creating a new account using the same details is nearly impossible. PayPal retains and monitors personal information such as your name, email, phone number, and government ID.
Any attempt to reuse these details is likely to be flagged, leading to further restrictions.
Is there any scam in PayPal?
Yes, PayPal is a big-time scam, and we do not recommend anyone to use PayPal. PayPal has been permanently deactivating the accounts of some of its users without any sufficient reason.
The deactivation of the account is fine, but they have also been holding the money of users whose accounts have been deactivated.
Recently, we read a LinkedIn article where a user shared his experience of PayPal permanently deactivating his 20-year-old PayPal account without any reason.
However, his account was restored by the team later when the LinkedIn post reached to a team member of PayPal’s risk team. Only few lucky ones can get their account restored, what about the other people?
This is the reason why PayPal is a scam.
Some other PayPal scams
1. Email phishing scam PayPal
This is the most commong type of PayPal scam where a user will get a phising email regarding the pending payment of an invoice which is purchased from the goods or services you recently purchased.
Scammers will reach out to users via a legitimate-looking PayPal service email address. However, the grammar errors, body of the emails, odd punctuation and extra space highlight the potential phishing attempt.
Always remember, Phising emails are poorly written. Large companies, especially like PayPal, will never ever reach out to its users and ask for payment of pending invoices, passwords, paswords and any other potential details of their users.
If you never get such kind of emails, make sure you reach out to PayPal team or send them an email at : phishing@paypal.com
2. Fake customer support
In this PayPal scam, someone might call you or email you, showcasing themself as a customer support representative of PayPal. Their email might also look the same as someone from PayPal has really reached out to you. However, this might be a scam because the PayPal customer team won’t send you an email upfront and ask for any kind of payment.
This can be a potential scam and be aware of it. Make sure to read the email carefully twice. Do not make any payments if you have not been asked.
If there is confusion, visit the official website of PayPal and call their customer support team.
3. Overpayment
Overpayment is another PayPal scam where a customer sends PayPal payment that is more than the purchase price o the order and then asks you to wire them the difference.
They will tell you they have mistakenly sent you extra money for the shipping cost, and they may ask you to refund the money.
Even if the payment appears in your account, it is not safe to use it. You can report such activity to the PayPal team or send the money back.
4. Advance fee scam
If someone has sent you free money on PayPal or by mistake, then it can be a potential scam. Scammers will ask for small amounts of refund for taxes and legal documents before they can send you the millions you are promised, but you will never get the amount they intend to send you. Do not send money to unknown via PayPal.
5. Paypal Employment scam
PayPal employment scams trick users with fake job offers claiming payments via PayPal. Scammers ask for fees, sensitive details, or upfront deposits. They may promise high earnings for simple tasks. Always verify recruiters, avoid sharing personal information, and never pay to get a job. Legitimate employers don’t require upfront payments.
6. Invoice scam
The next time of a PayPal scam is an invoice and money request scam. This type of scam on PayPal happens in three different ways:
- You will get an invoice for a product or service that you never ordered.
- You will receive an invoice from a scammer asking you to call the specific number mentioned in the invoice if you have received the invoice mistakenly.
- You will receive a fake invoice by email that looks like similar to PayPal email.
These are all scam type of invoice on PayPal where scammers will try to trick you into sending or transfering money to fradulent account. Never ever transfer, or send any money that has been asked on behalf of PayPal.
FAQs: Is PayPal A Scam
1. Is PayPal a scam?
No, PayPal is a legitimate payment platform, but users may face issues like holds or disputes.
2. Why does PayPal hold funds?
Funds may be held due to security checks, disputes, or unusual account activity.
3. Is PayPal safe to use?
Yes, it uses encryption and fraud protection, but users must follow policies carefully.