According to this email, which purports to be from PayPal, your transaction is being reviewed. Supposedly, PayPal’s “system has detected that you are using a new unknown device”.
The email includes information about a recent payment that it claims was made via your PayPal account and invites you to click a link to cancel the transaction.
However, PayPal did not send the email and the listed transaction never took place. In fact, the email is a phishing scam designed to steal your personal and financial information.
The criminals responsible for the scam email hope that at least a few recipients will be panicked into clicking the “cancel” link in the mistaken belief that their PayPal account has been hijacked.
If you do click the link, you will be taken to a scam website that looks like it is part of PayPal. Once on the fake site, you will be asked to log in with your PayPal email address and password. Then, you will be instructed to complete a “refund form” that asks for your credit card number, your name and contact details, and other identifying information.
At the end of the process, a final message will claim that you have successfully cancelled the transaction and that your money will be refunded. You will then be automatically redirected to the real PayPal website.
But, the criminals can now use the information you submitted on the fake site to take over your PayPal account and conduct fraudulent transactions. They can also use your credit card information to conduct further fraudulent transactions. And, using all of the information they have collected, they may also be able to steal your identity.
PayPal phishing scams like this are very common.
Note that legitimate PayPal notification emails will always address you by name. They will not omit this greeting. Nor will they use generic greetings such as “Dear User”, “Dear Customer” or “Dear [your email address]”.
PayPal has information about phishing scams and how to report them on its website.
A screenshot of the scam email:
Text Transcript of the scam email:
Thanks for paying with PayPal Your transaction is being reviewed because our system has detected that you are using a new unknown device You can Cancel this transaction. Transaction ID: 4SL62519748962801 Date: 1 Septembar 2019 Payment status: COMPLETED Description Unit Price Quantity Amount 12 Month Smart IPTV Deal - *** SALE SALE SALE *** RRP £59 173278598160 206,95 EURO 1 206,95 EURO Shipping and handling 0,00 EURO Total 206,95 EURO Payment 206,95 EURO To amount 206,95 EURO This transaction will appear on your statement as PAYPAL *BRADLEYF192. International Shipping and Import Charge Transaction ID: 4SL62519PT2262801 A separate payment was sent to this global shipping company to ship your package and to clear customs.
