Two weeks ago, we told you how PayPal’s revised user agreement expanded the company’s already-intrusive existing permission to send pre-recorded robocalls and spam texts, and how the company gave users no apparent way to opt out. Then the FCC chimed in, telling the company that its terms appear to violate federal law. Now, several U.S. Senators are asking PayPal to rethink its terms before they go into effect on July 1. [More]
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FCC Says PayPal’s New User Agreement Violates Anti-Robocall Rules
By 6.11.15
We recently took a look at how PayPal’s already questionable user agreement is about to get even more invasive, giving the company a broader range of ways to contact customers with robocalls and spam texts, and with no apparent way to opt out. Today, the FCC notified PayPal that it has some concerns that the revised agreement might run afoul of federal laws. [More]
PayPal’s New Terms Of Service Mean More Robocalls, Spam Texts For Users
By 6.2.15
PayPal’s terms of service already include a clause giving the company permission to make prerecorded marketing robocalls to the number you provide them, and to send texts to that number if it’s for a mobile phone. But starting in July, PayPal is giving itself a lot more authority for bothering you — and not just on the phone number you have on record. [More]
PayPal Must Pay $25M In Refunds, Penalties For Illegally Signing Customers Up For Online Credit Product
By 5.19.15
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau alleges that online payment platform PayPal signed up customers for PayPal credit accounts without authorization, forced customers to use this credit line instead of their preferred payment methods, and failed to address disputes. As a result, PayPal will pay a total of $25 million in refunds and penalties. [More]
Apple Pay Unavailable At Home Depot As Retailer Upgrades Payment Terminals
By 5.5.15
Though Home Depot was never officially a partner with Apple’s Apple Pay mobile payment platform, which allows users to pay using credit card information stored their phones, the home improvement chain’s NFC-enabled checkout terminals worked with Apple Pay — until recently, that is. The retailer has begun the process of upgrading its in-store payment system, meaning that Apple Pay and other mobile payment platforms are now unavailable. [More]
PayPal Must Pay $7.7M For Processing Transactions In Violation Of U.S. Sanctions
By 3.27.15
Each year, PayPal processes billions of dollars in transactions. Apparently some of those payments didn’t exactly sit well with the U.S. government and now the company must pay $7.7 million for violating certain sanctions. [More]
Fraud Victim’s Impossible Choice: Eat $1,500 In Charges Or Be Banned From PayPal Forever
By 3.13.15
When a customer’s chargeback scheme left one PayPal customer down $1,500 and without the pricey headphones that they had sold, the person who sold the headphones was understandably upset. It’s wrong to rip anyone off, but they’re an individual seller rather than a faceless corporation. PayPal reduced the amount that this person owed to $700, but that was still $700 more than they really owed anyone. What’s a consumer to do? In this case, post to Reddit. [More]
Burger King India Let Customers Pre-Order Sandwiches Through eBay
By 11.4.14
Right after announcing a deal with PayPal that will allow customers to buy food without cash or credit cards, Burger King tried out PayPal’s parent company eBay to let customers in India pre-order Whoppers before the restaurants launch in the Asian nation. [More]
Burger King, PayPal Join Forces So Consumers Can Buy Whoppers With A Touch Of Their Phones
By 11.3.14
Consumers partial to using PayPal for purchases can soon take the payment system offline to buy breakfast, lunch, or dinner at Burger King. [More]
eBay To Spin Off PayPal So They Can Compete Against Each Other For Worst Company Title
By 9.30.14
For years, we’ve had to lump eBay and PayPal into a single listing in the Worst Company In America brackets. But next year, these two big brands might have the chance to square off against each other for the title, as eBay announced this morning that it is spinning off PayPal into its own publicly traded business. [More]
PayPal Kinda, Sorta Starts Accepting Bitcoin As Payment But Only For A Very Select Group
By 9.23.14
A very select group of merchants who use PayPal now have another option when it comes to receiving payments. The digital wallet company will soon offer digital goods sellers the ability to accept bitcoin as payment through its Payments Hub service. [More]
PayPal Takes Out NY Times Ad To Taunt Apple Over Security Issues
By 9.16.14
If you ran a large and prosperous online payments company, you might feel threatened by Apple’s announcement that they’ will start their own mobile payments service, called Apple Pay. Not PayPal, though. Nope. Paypal isn’t scared. In fact, PayPal has started taunting Apple over security issues, mocking the company over the recent public dump of nude celebrity self-portraits that had been stolen and circulated online. [More]
Amazon Launches Card Reader, Payment System To Compete With Square, PayPal
By 8.13.14
Amazon continued its push to appeal to small and medium businesses Wednesday with the launch of Amazon Local Register, a mobile point-of-sale service to challenge mobile payment companies like PayPal, Intuit and Square. [More]
Watch Out For This Very Convincing PayPal Phishing Attempt
By 6.25.14
Reader Phil sells on eBay, and has a specific e-mail address that’s only for use with PayPal. The only people he has given this address to are eBay/PayPal itself, and to his customers. That’s why he was surprised to receive a phishing e-mail specifically addressed to his business name and his PayPal address, and wondered where the baddies got it. [More]
PayPal Discontinues Mobile Check Capture As Of, Um, Yesterday
By 6.16.14
Justin uses Paypal’s mobile check deposit feature, because that’s a service that his credit union doesn’t offer. He wasn’t happy when he received an e-mail from the company yesterday saying that they would be discontinuing the service. Then he saw the end date: Sunday. They were yanking the service with no warning. [More]
Amazon Launches PayPal-Like Payment System For Consumers, Businesses
By 6.9.14
Amazon is quickly turning itself into an online one-stop-shop for consumers. Next up for the e-tail giant? Entering the e-commerce fold with a new payment product system that puts it in direct competition with PayPal. [More]
What’s The Fastest Way To Beam 10 Bucks To A Friend?
By 4.21.14
Let’s say that you owe a friend money, but you can’t just hand them some cash and call it a day: your friend lives in a different state. What is the easiest, most cost-effective, and most importantly the fastest way to beam money from one person to another? Over at the Wall Street Journal’s Marketwatch, staffers decided to race four different services and see how they differed. [More]
Bank Of America, Monsanto, Verizon Move On To Next Round Of Worst Company Competition
March 21, 2014
After three days of Worst Company In America voting, nine big businesses lie battered and bloody on the sandpaper mat of the WCIA Dodecahedron of Doom. But we are not here to mourn the fallen, but to hurl rotting fruit at the victors who survive to fight another day. [More]
