Tuesday, 06 December 2022 14:56

Scam: "We have detected some suspicious unlawful activities with your Paypal account."

Written by Nate Covington

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Scam: "We have detected some suspicious unlawful activities with your Paypal account."

I received this message through my PayPal account and almost fell for it, figured I'd share and warn others.

Below is the full message they sent - their strategy is to use the "money request" feature in PayPal to trick you into calling a fraudulant 888 toll free number so they can try to gain access to your PayPal account.

This comes through as a REAL "money request" in your PayPal account. But the transaction and overall premise is a lie.

Example A:

Hello, Nate Covington
Helen Harper sent you a money request

NOTE FROM Helen Harper:

We have detected some suspicious unlawful activities with your Paypal account. If you did not make this transaction through target store, please call us at toll free number +1 (888) 962-7298. to cancel and claim a refund. If this is not the case, you will be charged $699. 99 today. Within the automated deduction of the amount, this transaction will reflect on PayPal activity after 24 hours. Our Service Hours: (06:00 a. m. to 06:00 p. m. Pacific Time, Monday through Friday)

Payment request details
Transaction ID
U-61U31513UN2097411
Transaction date
December 5, 2022

Amount requested $699.99 USD

Example B:

------- Forwarded Message --------

Subject: Invoice from FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY (0006)
Date: Tue, 06 Dec 2022 07:57:19 -0800
From: FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>;
Reply-To: FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>;
To: Nate Covington <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>;

Hello, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Here's your invoice

FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY sent you an invoice for $699.99 USD

Due on receipt

View and Pay Invoice Buy now. Pay over time.

Simply select PayPal Credit at checkout and enjoy No Interest if paid in full in 6 months. Subject to credit approval. See terms. US customers only.

Seller note to customer

We have detected some suspicious unlawful activities with your Paypal account. If you did not make this transaction through target store, please call us at toll free number +1 (888) 987-1659. to cancel and claim a refund. If this is not the case, you will be charged $699. 99 today. Within the automated deduction of the amount, this transaction will reflect on PayPal activity after 24 hours. Our Service Hours: (06:00 a. m. to 06:00 p. m. Pacific Time, Monday through Friday)

Don't know this seller?

You can safely ignore this invoice if you're not buying anything from this seller. PayPal won't ask you to call or send texts to phone numbers in an invoice. We don't ask for your credentials or auto-debit money from your account against any invoices. Contact us if you're still not sure.

Not sure why you received this email? Learn more

PayPal RT000238:en_US(en-US):1.4.0:f720847e350e4

Last modified on Monday, 20 February 2023 13:42

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