Consumer complaint received 2023-01-22
Company: Paypal Holdings, Inc
State: CA
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Managing, opening, or closing your mobile wallet account

Complaint:
I have been getting emails from Venmo regarding an account that I never asked for. The first time I ever heard of Venmo was when I got one of these emails. I never wanted anything to do with this company, and would still like them to just go away. 

I have dug through my email and appended all the pertinent messages I have. In the latest, they are asking for a bunch of personal information that of course I will not supply to such a sloppy operator. One wonders if they are up to something untoward like the XXXX XXXX fake accounts scandal. 

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- - The thread, latest email XX/XX/XXXX -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- You have a new message from Venmo regarding request # XXXX. To respond, simply reply to this email. 
Hi There, My name is XXXX XXXX and your account has been escalated to me Thank you for contacting us. 

Your account has been frozen because we need to verify that you are the owner of this account. To help us with this verification, please use our Document Upload Form, linked below, to send in the following : A picture ( not a photocopy ) of your unexpired US government-issued photo ID that shows your legal name ( we can accept your driver 's license, state ID card, passport, or green card ) A recent monthly statement for the BANK ending in XXXX You can find our Document Upload Form here : XXXX : XXXX? XXXX & XXXX & XXXX ( If you have trouble following this link, try copying it and pasting it into your browser. ) We need to see your ID in full, but feel free to cover any sensitive information on your other documents before you send them to us. We only need to see the last four digits of the account number, the date, and your full name. 

If you do not have a statement for your debit card, the bank statement is plenty. Simply leave the last 4 digits of your debit card number visible in the transaction section of the statement. 

For your privacy and security, please do not reply back to this email with your documents. Once you submit your information through the above link, we will review your case and reply with more information regarding your account. 

We appreciate your cooperation and look forward to hearing back from you. 

Best regards. 

XXXX XXXX [ Account XXXX ] Venmo Venmo is a service of XXXX XXXX XXXX, a licensed provider of money transfer services. All money transmission is provided by XXXX XXXX XXXX pursuant to XXXX XXXX XXXX licenses. 

XXXX is located at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- earlier email XX/XX/XXXX -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- XXXX created this problem, you fix it. 
On XX/XX/XXXX XXXX, Team Venmo ( Team Venmo ) wrote : XXXX Venmo Help XXXX XXXX You have a new message from Venmo regarding request # XXXX. To respond, simply reply to this email. 
XXXX XXXX Hello XXXX, XXXX XXXX Thank you for your response. 
> > We've frozen your account because we need to verify that you're the owner of this account. It appears that you have not provided us with an ID. Using this link, please submit an unobscured XXXX copy or picture of your unexpired government-issued photo ID which shows your legal name to begin the review process : XXXX XXXX https : XXXX? XXXX & XXXX XXXX XXXX Acceptable forms of ID include your driver 's license, state ID card, passport, or green card. 
XXXX XXXX Thank you for your cooperation, XXXX XXXX XXXX Venmo XXXX XXXX Venmo is a service of XXXX XXXX XXXX, a licensed provider of money transfer services. All money transmission is provided by XXXX XXXX XXXX pursuant to XXXX XXXX XXXX licenses. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX is located at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX > > [ XXXX ] -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- next earlier email XX/XX/XXXX -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Thanks XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX should not have any account linked to my email address, and certainly not one created today ( XX/XX/XXXX ) as your system claims. I have never had any interaction with Venmo prior to receiving your email asserting ( falsely ) that I have an account. Nor do I have a phone number ending in XXXX. Please close that account and expunge all records having anything to do with me. 

If the account really was set up by accident, it raises the obvious question of how your processes could be sloppy enough to let that happen. Only fools do business with sloppy financial institutions. 

One other thing. An earlier email advised me to click on a link to report the problem. Everyone knows that clicking on links in unsolicited emails is a security risk. This is poor advice to give anyone. 


On XX/XX/XXXX XXXX PM, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Venmo XXXX wrote : XXXX Venmo Help XXXX Venmo Customer Support XXXX XXXX Your request ( # XXXX ) has been updated. To add additional comments, reply to this email. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( Venmo ) XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX PM XXXX XXXX Hello XXXX, XXXX XXXX Thanks for contacting Venmo! My name is XXXX I'll be assisting you. 
XXXX XXXX I hope you're doing well today. 
XXXX XXXX I'm glad you reached out to us. I'll be delighted to help you out with this. 
> > We do have an account in our system that's linked to the email you wrote in from- it's possible you may have created it a while ago and forgot about it. The account tied to this email was created on XX/XX/XXXX and is linked to a phone number ending in XXXX. Do you ( or did you ) have a phone number matching that information? If so I'd be happy to cancel the account for you, but for security reasons I'll need you to confirm that full phone number for me. 
> > If that doesn't match your phone number then it's likely what happened is someone else misspelled their email when creating an account with us and wound up accidentally adding yours. If that's the case I can go ahead and remove your email from their account so you don't receive any further notifications from us. Let me know! 
> > Looking forward to hearing back from you soon! 
XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
XXXX Venmo I Support XXXX XXXX This email is a service from Venmo. 
XXXX Venmo Customer Support > [ XXXX ] -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- - earliest email XX/XX/XXXX -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Why am I getting this email and many copies of the attached email? I have no Venmo account, never asked for one and don't want one. I have no XXXX XXXX account either, as the attached email alleges. Nor any relationship with XXXX. 


-- -- -- -- Forwarded Message -- -- -- -- Subject : Verify Email Address on Venmo and See Helpful XXXX Date : Fri, XXXX XX/XX/XXXX XXXX XXXX From : Venmo XXXX Reply-To : XXXX To : XXXX venmo We're so happy you're here! 

Dear dfsfd, Welcome to Venmo! 

Now all that's left to do is verify your email address so we can let you know when you get paid. 
Verify your email Some helpful information Get to know us - what Venmo is best used for, safety tips, and more info so you can use Venmo like a pro. 
Payments on Venmo Buyer and Seller Beware Who Can See My Venmo Transactions? 
Friends on Venmo Secure Your Venmo Account Bank Withdrawal Timing Prohibited Transactions We're always here for you Any questions? Want to connect with us? You can always reach out to Venmo XXXX. 

Thanks, XXXX Venmo Wasnt you? Report this email here. 
XXXX is located at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX Please do not reply directly to this email as you will not receive a response. For assistance, please visit our Help Center at help.venmo.com. 

[ Venmo ] Your bank account has been added.eml Subject : [ Venmo ] Your bank account has been added From : Venmo XXXX Date : XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX To : XXXX venmo XXXX In order to do this, we already issued two small deposits and two withdrawals of the same amount to your bank. Check your XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX statement in 1-3 business days, then go to https : //venmo.com/verifybank to verify the amounts. 

Add an additional layer of security to your Venmo account by setting up a PIN code in our mobile app. Learn more Venmo is a service of XXXX XXXX XXXX, a licensed provider of money transfer services. All money transmission is provided by XXXX XXXX XXXX pursuant to XXXX XXXX XXXX licenses. 
XXXX is located at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief