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New PayPal Phishing Attempts Are After Your Account Info

By January 15, 2021May 11th, 2022Cybersecurity

Hackers and scammers have hit the ground running in 2021, launching an extensive new phishing campaign that targets the legions of PayPal users around the world. The campaign is being run on both text message and email channels and if you’re a PayPal user, you may have already seen it. If you haven’t, in the days and weeks ahead, you’ll probably get a text or an email to the effect that the company has detected suspicious activity on your account.

It will say the company has taken the step of “limiting” your account, which puts restrictions on withdrawing, sending or receiving money. Whether you get the text or email variant of the communication, the scammers will “helpfully” include a link, and ask you to verify your account information in order to remove these restrictions.

Naturally, this isn’t a legitimate PayPal communication and if you tap or click on the link, you’ll be sent to a spoof page that looks like it contains a PayPal login box. Unfortunately, if you attempt to log in, all you’ll be doing is handing your login credentials over to the scammers, giving them unfettered access to your account. If you maintain a balance in your PayPal account, it will be promptly drained. If you have bank accounts or credit cards linked to your account, you can expect them to be abused.

This isn’t a new idea or a new type of campaign, but it is one of the first coordinated efforts we’ve seen in 2021 and as such, it pays to be aware of it.

If you get a communication regarding your PayPpal account and you even suspect that it might be true, rather than relying on the link supplied in the text or email, open a new tab and navigate to PayPal’s login page manually. That’s the easiest way to avoid this type of scam.

Jason Manteiga

Jason J. Manteiga, Vice President of Olmec Systems, has been part of the company for over the past 20 years. He believes that having a great work environment and supportive team, is the ultimate key to success. Since being in the IT realm for over 25 years, Jason, along with Olmec Systems, has been on the Inc. 5000 “List of America’s Fastest Growing Private Companies” and Channel Futures MSP 501 “Top Managed Service Providers in North America,” along with other awards and nominations. Jason earned his Bachelor Degree in Information Systems from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. He also holds certifications in Microsoft MCSE, VMWare VCP, and Cisco CCNA. In his spare time, Jason is a contributor for The Center for Social & Legal Research (Privacy Exchange) and a member of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce. His hobbies include cycling and kayaking. He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife, two daughters and son.