Watch out for this PayPal phishing email scam
INDIANAPOLIS — While I'm always on the lookout for the latest scams, I didn't have to look far for this one–it landed right in my inbox.
At first glance, the email appears to be from PayPal Customer Care, alerting me about an unauthorized transaction on my account for $712. The email includes a transaction ID and looks very professional. t says in order to safeguard my account and process an immediate refund, I need to contact the 'fraud prevention team' at the phone number listed in the email.
The email also contains a link that supposedly leads to a Docusign document for me to review and sign.
However, a closer look at the email shows that it came from a .net email address. But the reply email listed in the email body is a gmail.com address. As Scamicide points out, neither PayPal nor Docusign use .net or gmail.com domains in their communications.
In addition, a legitimate email of this nature should probably include my name and the last four digits of my account number. It contains neither.
Clicking on the link contained in the email would only lead to a malicious website designed to steal my sensitive information. Anyone on the other side of the phone number would likely start asking for the same.
As icing on the cake, I checked my PayPal account and there was no unauthorized transaction there. This is a confirmed scam.
As always, you should avoid clicking on links in unsolicited or suspicious emails. If you want to look for any suspicious activity on any of your accounts, it's best to navigate to the website on your own instead of relying on a link sent to you in a text or email.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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