Consumer complaint received 2024-05-12
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Managing, opening, or closing your mobile wallet account — 
Company: Block, Inc. (CA)

I've recently discovered that Cash App ( the subsidiary of Block , Inc ) completely refuses to process any CCPA-related requests unless they are submitted through their proprietary mobile application. Furthermore, their mobile application intentionally blocks some consumers without explanation, and the company refuses to provide any guidance or alternatives for such consumers to submit data privacy requests. Furthermore, the company engages in multiple adversarial practices to hinder consumers from reporting privacy violations, including instructing support representatives to immediately hang up if they become aware the call is being recorded by the consumer. 

Below I will summarize the timeline of events in chronological order ; screenshots, recordings, and transcripts are listed in the attached document and referenced by section in the following text. 

On XXXX, I found that I was unable to log in to my existing Cash App account, with no rationale given by the app for denying my login. After verifying my credentials were correct, I contacted customer support by phone call. Upon notifying the support representative that I was recording the call, they immediately hung up. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section A. 

Again on XXXX, I called back and declined to mention my call recording, since two-party consent had already been obtained by the automated message at the beginning of the call stating that it was being recorded. I reported the login error and the support representative refused to provide any information on why I was being blocked, other than that it " may be due to the device or software used to access Cash App ''. When I explained that I would like a specific reason for being denied service, the support representative immediately hung up. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section B. 

Again on XXXX, I called back and asked to submit a complaint. I explained the events of the preceding call, and was informed that I would receive follow-up on my complaint by email. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section C. 

From XXXX to XXXX, I corresponded with a " Cash App XXXX XXXX '' named XXXX via email. The XXXX flatly ignored all of my inquiries and refused to provide any assistance or explanation whatsoever regarding my being denied service, other than the same scripted response that it " may happen due to the device or software used to access Cash App ''. When I explained that I wanted a specific reason for being denied service, the XXXX immediately closed the ticket and blocked any further replies. Screenshots of all email correspondence are attached in Section D. 

On XXXX, I contacted customer support again by phone to request that they re-open the ticket that was closed by the previous agent. The agent said they " can transfer [ my ] case again with this team, so you can try to contact them again [ ... ] but [ they ] can't reopen that case again ''. When I asked for clarification on what exactly that meant, the agent hung up immediately. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section XXXX. 

Again on XXXX, I called back again, requesting once more to receive an explanation of why I was being denied service. However, when I pointed out to the representative that I would be reporting a complaint if they hung up in the middle of the call like the last XXXX agents, they accused me of recording the call and immediately hung up. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section F. 

Again on XXXX, I called back and explained the issue for a seventh time. After XXXX minutes of repetitive troubleshooting questions, I was again given the same canned " due to the device or software used to access Cash App '' answer. When I explained that this did not answer the question, the agent immediately hung up. I concluded that Cash App was unwilling to provide any form of customer support regarding access to their services, so I uninstalled their software and no longer used their services. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section G. 

On XXXX, I received an email from Cash App asking me to log in to my account and provide additional personal information for an account that I no longer used. Because I no longer needed this account, I attempted to delete it. However, Cash App does not offer any way to delete your account using an automated system, and their support documentation instructs you to contact their customer support to do so. 

As a result, on XXXX, I contacted Cash App customer support by phone to delete my account under the terms of the CCPA. After verifying my identity, the support agent said that I was required to provide additional information using their mobile application. I told them that I only wanted to delete my account, and was informed that they would refuse to delete my account unless I used their mobile application. When I informed them that I had previously contacted support and been refused access to the aforementioned mobile application, the support representative hung up, ignoring my explicit reminders that the XXXX requires them to comply with account deletion requests. Transcript and recording of this call are attached in section H. 

Again on XXXX, I called back as a final attempt to obtain compliance with my CCPA account deletion request. This time I told the support representative that I did not have access to a smartphone, to see how they would treat one of the many residents of California who does not have reliable access to the latest personal computing devices. The support representative nevertheless informed me that only one method is provided for processing account deletion requests ( in violation of the XXXX, which requires at least two ), and that anyone who does not own a compatible smartphone ( the company refuses to disclose what exactly makes a smartphone " compatible '', since apparently mine isn't ) is not entitled to their rights under the XXXX. I repeatedly pointed out that this stance was in violation of California state law, but despite this, the support representative ( like the previous XXXX ) abruptly hung up the call without making any attempt to process the request. 

I also issued the same CCPA account deletion request to several publicly listed email addresses associated with Cash App, including XXXX, XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX, but received either no response or automated responses indicating that no response would be provided in each case. 

As far as I can tell, Cash App makes no attempt to comply even cursorily with the terms of the CCPA, in particular : - providing only XXXX method of processing data deletion requests, as opposed to the at least XXXX required by law - refusing to provide a method of identity verification that can be used by all residents of California, and placing an undue burden on submittors by requiring them to own a mobile device that complies with an unwritten internal policy that the company refuses to disclose - intentionally obstructing the processing of data privacy requests by instructing support staff to immediately hang up at the first sign of any difficulty - intentionally obstructing the reporting of these privacy law violations by strongly discouraging customers from recording calls that are already being recorded by the company and in which no party has any reasonable expectation of privacy - implementing their verification requirements in a way that specifically discriminates against California residents with low income or unstable employment, who are less likely to own a smartphone that is sufficiently modern to comply with Cash App 's unwritten internal policy on suitability for verification For context, I have several Cash App accounts, all of which I no longer am able to use but all of which I am unable to delete because Cash App does not comply with XXXX data deletion requests : - XXXX for personal use - XXXX formerly for business by a sole proprietorship which no longer exists - XXXX for business by an LLC