PayPal message re "IRS Summons"

[stratoskier]

OK -- this is a weird one. I'm wondering if anyone has a clue whether this might be real or is some sort of scam or phishing operation.

I just got an email that says it's from paypal@paypal.com which says: "PayPal has received a summons from the United States Internal Revenue Service requiring us to produce various account records, including data related to your PayPal account." It goes on to say that the summons has something to do with offshore accounts.

Now normally, I'd ignore something like this, except for the fact that the salutation uses my full name (not my username or something like "PayPal Customer"). Also, there are no goofy links, email addresses, etc that suggest a phishing operation. Those two things make me wonder if this is real.

For the record, I don't have any offshore accounts and I think I'm pretty clean by IRS standards.

Anybody know anything about this?

Cheers,
Bert

[IbanezFreak777]

I wouldn't worry, it sounds fake just from your description.

Ring up paypal if your that worried and just ask them. They will give you the definitive answer your looking for...

my bet its a fake

[dragsternj]

How about contacting PP instead of getting some guesswork here?

[stratoskier]

Well... I've tried to contact them in the past and only found the "report phishing" links. That only generated an automated response that wasn't particularly enlightening. Anyone have a better email contact?

[CosmicDebris]

Send them all your info. What could be the harm?


If the IRS wanted you they would have you. It's BS dude.

[supermau]

Sounds like BS to me. Have you tried clicking on the link provided to see exactly what address is takes you to? DON'T log in, just check the address vs the real Paypal login page.

[Rich]

Of course it's a phish! Log into paypal [NOT through a link] and if it was legit it would be requested on your account page.

[stratoskier]

OK -- but isn't the fact that they have my full name a little odd?

Rich -- nothing visible on my account page re this, which is reassuring.

Supermau -- there ISN'T any link provided. That's why it didn't seem like the usual phishing scheme.

[IbanezFreak777]

I wasn't guessing, rich was correct, any email sent from paypal would have a request when you log into your account.

[jemplayer55]

Right off the PayPal site.... call them!

We will only discuss account information with the account holder.
To confirm that you are the account holder, please have the following information available when you call:

Your telephone number
Information about the credit card or bank account you registered with PayPal
Your email address registered with PayPal
For faster service, make sure your account information is complete and up to date. You can update this information by logging into your account. From the My Account tab, click the Profile subtab. Then click the link for the information you want to change.

Hours of service:
4:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST Monday through Friday
6:00 AM PST to 8:00 PM PST Saturday and Sunday

For general questions, please call:
1-402-935-2050 (a U.S. telephone number)

[stratoskier]

Thanks for all the help! I'll give them a call.

FWIW -- some of you may recall that a couple of years ago, I got seriously screwed in another PayPal incident. That time someone in Calcutta cracked into my PayPal account and spent close to $5K overnight before I was alerted and closed the account. Both bank account debits and credit cards were involved. The fix took months. Naturally, I'm now spooked by all things related to PayPal.
Bert

[OLIE_ROCKS_THE_80'S]

I've dealt with paypal for years and that definitely sounds like a scam!
It is no surprise to me that you got the phishing email with your full name
con men are getting better and getting your full name isn't that hard.
So as others suggested call them up.

[courtney2018]

You've got nothing to worry about. If the IRS is wanting information about your PayPal account, they'll contact you directly via certified mail, or at least by regular mail. It's just a BS message to get you to do something scam related.

You can also call the IRS. I've done that before and actually talked to someone. It was concerning something else, but they can pull up your information and see if they're any flags on your account.

Post the entire message including the header information.

[540s]

If you have a yahoo email address thats where they got your name.... It's fake. I received one a few days ago thqat claimed to be from IRS & paypal saying I had a refund due.


I logged ionto PP & called IRS to verify & report.