Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Step1
Look for fraudulent emails in your inbox. Emails directed to a wrong email address or an email address that isn't your primary email address may be indicative of fraudulent activity happening on your or another's account. Follow up suspicious emails by checking in with an official Paypal representative and requesting activity history on your account.
Step2
Check for suspicious content in emails. Scammers use deceptive links and subject lines to try and have Paypal users click on the links and enter personal information. Check to see that all links indicate a secure session by confirming that URLs begin with "https." Subject lines that inform users of an immediate need to take action to "restore account access" for instance may also be tied to a scam.
Step3
Review the greeting of your email. If the email in your inbox does not identify you after the greeting, you are likely dealing with a scam message. A true email from Paypal will likely have your first and last name included in the message.
Step4
Keep an eye out for odd requests in emails. Legitimate emails from Paypal don't require users to provide personal or financial information through email, including Social Security numbers, account passwords, email addresses, credit card numbers, driver's licenses, bank account numbers or your full name.
Step5
Note obvious signs of scam emails. Paying attention to poor grammar, misspellings, odd-looking email layouts, different logos and other indicators may save you from being scammed.
