PayPal now demands your mobile number to login

[Ed Gordon]

I went to login to PayPal to review my monthly statement this morning and after authenticating, I was directed to this screen:


There is no option to bypass this. If you do not have a mobile phone or you simply choose not to give it in order to avoid spam, you are not allowed to login any longer. I called PayPal support and was told that "sometime in the future" they should add two factor authentication via email or home phone, but for now they will not allow you to see your account online. The guy from support, actually read my monthly statement to me over the phone, since I could not see it!

Can anyone suggest an alternative to PayPal that is a bit less arrogant and demanding?

[Chip Gelmini]

Western Union.

[David Strelitz]

We have had two factor authentication in the UK for a couple of years with various accounts. All of the banks use it as well as certain other financial organisations. Pay Pal occasionally check before paying some purchases. PayPal is not going to give your mobile number to third parties. Get over yourself! They are trying to protect YOUR account.

[Gary Sayers]

Yes, in the UK, when you log in, you get authentication required by either:

• Receive a WhatsApp message
• Receive a text
• Have us call you

Sometimes, before this, I also get the 'I am not a robot' thing, where I have to identify the squares contains traffic lights or whatever.

On the odd occasion, it's let me in without any confirmation required other than my login password but that's quite rare now.

[Ed Gordon]

We have had two factor authentication in the UK for a couple of years with various accounts. All of the banks use it as well as certain other financial organisations. Pay Pal occasionally check before paying some purchases. PayPal is not going to give your mobile number to third parties. Get over yourself! They are trying to protect YOUR account.

David, we do have two factor authentication in the US. I deal with several financial online services, and they support TFA and include the option to send a code to me via text, email, or automated call to the phone number you have in your account.

I would to like believe that "PayPal is not going to give your mobile number to third parties", but that is simply not true.

Note what a vicious hidden trap this is: a mice-type consent in a form that most people aren't going to read, letting them give your mobile phone number to debt collectors and robo-dialers. Without your consent, this is illegal under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Why should PayPal be hiding this language in their agreement for the benefit of debt collectors? Here's the offending language (bold added):

• By providing PayPal a telephone number (including a mobile telephone number), you agree to receive autodialed and prerecorded message calls at that number. The ways in which you provide us a telephone number include, but are not limited to, providing a telephone number at Account opening, adding a telephone number to your Account at a later time, providing it to one of our employees, or by contacting us from that phone number. If a telephone number provided to us is a mobile telephone number, you consent to receive SMS or text messages at that number. We won’t share your phone number with non-affiliated third parties for their purposes without your consent, but may share your phone numbers with our Family of Companies or with our service providers, such as billing or collections companies, who may contact you using autodialed or prerecorded message calls or text messages. Standard telephone minute and text charges may apply if we contact you.

Anyone who gives consent to let any debt collector in the universe call their cell phone is asking for a lifetime sentence to debt collections hell -- and not owing a debt is not necessarily a reason for debt collectors not to harass you.

The picture above is an opt-out letter for the arbitration piece of this abomination, but the only way to avoid this hidden vicious consent to enter debt collections hell is NOT TO GIVE PAYPAL A MOBILE PHONE NUMBER.

Source:johngearlaw.com

[Osi Osgood]

So, apparently, PayPal IS giving your number to third parties, so there is reason for alarm.

[David Roberts]

When I moved house recently,my landline and mobile phone numbers also changed.I was then not able to access my paypal account to advise them,so havnt used it since. Cant say Ive missed it.

[David Strelitz]

So, apparently, PayPal IS giving your number to third parties, so there is reason for alarm.

No. If you read the legalise it clearly states they won't share it without consent.
That seems how it works here. It seems quite reasonable that if someone uses PayPal but don't have the funds in their linked bank account that PayPal pass it on to a collection agency.

[Mike Newell]

Never had a issue with it. It is standard policy to reduce fraud. If concerned buy a cheap burner mobile or use a mobile number that you don’t care about. If you have a mobile “big brother” ☠️ already knows everything about you.