Paypal information

by Yy Thu Mar 20, 2008 8:35 pm

(1) How do you know if someone is safe / reliable enough that you can transact with them on Paypal?
Always request the Member's Information screenshot. See attached picture below.
The Member Information box will display:
(i) The seller's reputation. This is the number of Verified Paypal members who have made paypal payments to that member. Unverified members who have made payments don't count towards that score. It is very hard to increase and means that the member is less likely to defraud you. To increase this score, the member must have transacted regularly with just Verified Paypal members (e.g. often rejecting payments from Unverified members). If this score is <200, be wary...
(ii) Account status. Only deal with Verified members. Verified members have completed some steps towards verifying their identity with Paypal. If they are unverified members, be wary...
(iii) Account type. Preferably, only deal with Premier / Business account holders. These are members who regularly transact on Paypal and pay commission charges to Paypal. This means they are less likely to cheat you. If they are personal account holders, be wary...
(iv) Account Creation Date & Paypal Member For. This shows how long he / she has been on Paypal. If they have been on Paypal for some time, they have often built up a track record on Paypal - they are less likely to cheat you and get their account suspended. If the user has been on Paypal less than 2 years, be wary...

(2) How do you "test" if a Paypal account exists?
I usually create a Money Request for US$0.01 with the subject line "test". Once this Money Request is sent, it tells me:
(i) If the account exists. If it doesn't exist, Paypal will let you know that the email address has not been registered to use a Paypal service. In which case, the Paypal account, once created, is totally new! Be wary...
(ii) The name of the person behind the Paypal email (or at least, the name that is registered to that Paypal account). If the name differs from the person you expected to be dealing with, be wary...
(iii) The verified / unverified status of the recipient's account. If it's unverified, be wary...
(iv) The personal / premier / business type of the recipient's account. If it's personal account, be wary...
(v) The Paypal rating of the recipient's account. If it's a low rating, e.g. below 200, be wary...