People being warned about Pay Pal text scam sweeping south aimed at stealing personal information
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The payment platform has in excess of 375 million users and has been targeted at a time when the growth of online payments has rocketed due to Covid-19 shopping restrictions.
The convincing texts claim that someone has logged into their account and asks the recipient to tap a link to a bogus website to report if it was not them.
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Hide AdThe fake copycat site claims victims can secure their Pay Pal account by forwarding their log in details, but the page sends the information to thieves who then gain access to the account.
The News consumer expert Richard Thomson has warned people to be vigilant. He said: ‘Anyone receiving such a message should first contact Pay Pal directly to verify it is genuine before responding.
‘Scam texts should be reported to 7726, Ofcom’s free scam text service so that the relevant authorities can obtain intelligence about the scale of the problem and precisely who may be behind it.’