Consumer complaint received 2026-03-04 00:00:00
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Fraud or scam — 
Company: Paypal Holdings, Inc
State: NJ

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I contacted an alleged realtor named XXXX XXXX via XXXX for a local property I was interesting in renting. The impersonator gave a phone number of XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX, through which all our interactions were. The person used an address local to me, with a video showing the interior of an apartment for {$1400.00} a month at XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX NJ, XXXX. We arranged to tour the property on XX/XX/XXXX, and I was sent forms and a lease agreement under the false pretense I was to receive real estate service and a property. After completing these, I was told I was required to make payments to fulfill fees and deposits to be able to secure the appointment and apartment. On XX/XX/XXXX, I sent a total of {$400.00} on XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX, the impersonator became increasingly for aggressive, creating a sense of urgency by threatening the apartment was in high demand. They emphasized my competitive advantage and priority if I made more deposits quickly, as they " rejected '' other applicants that were willing to pay months in advance worth of the rent. I was then harassed consistently to send payments through XXXX, XXXX, or XXXX gift cards. They strongly emphasized that these payments had to be labeled as " Friends and Family '' or sent without protection and security features through the apps. It was also urged that with each transaction, I had to send screenshots or confirmation that these payments were sent. On XX/XX/XXXX, I sent a total of {$560.00} on XXXX. When the apps detected the payments were potentially fraud, my accounts and XXXX XXXX credit card were frozen, and the impersonator provided me with multiple accounts through XXXX to send money to. These were some of the accounts information : XXXX : Username : $ XXXX Last 4 digits : XXXX @ XXXX Name : XXXX XXXX Last 4 digit : XXXX @ XXXX Name XXXX XXXX XXXX Last 4 digit XXXX XXXX @ XXXX Name : XXXX XXXX Last 4 digit : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX name : XXXX XXXX XXXX @ Abdulsuii Name XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Name : XXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, the impersonator continued the same amount of aggression and urgency. After lease was sent and shown to be signed, a total of {$760.00} was sent through XXXX and {$410.00} was sent through PayPal. I asked the impersonator to send any verification that they received any payments, to which they sent a screenshot of them receiving the PayPal payment of {$410.00}, after heated debate. After requesting to call them, they denied availability. Their number did not accept until calls or voicemails through the interaction. On XX/XX/XXXX, a day before the alleged tour was to be had, I went to the property listed under the address and discovered the location and visuals did not match the alleged realtor 's advertisement. The property was not for sale and inhabited by tenants through an entirely different real estate agency. I also did further research on the identities that were impersonated, and the profile pictures were that of a man named XXXX XXXX, a director for a fast food company. At this point, no more payments were made, and the impersonator continued their script, becoming much more aggressive and unprofessional. I immediately opened a dispute with XXXX, to which they notified me over the phone that it would be escalated to their investigative department and I would be contacted in at least 3 days, or XX/XX/XXXX. I was told if the impersonator had any funds sitting in their XXXX accounts, they could be clawed back. I called PayPal, and after explaining the situation, they specified they could not do anything according to their Friends and Family policies, and they deemed the purchase as authorized because I was instructed to perform the payment without any security ( the Goods and Services transaction protection ). I also called XXXX XXXX, as the method of payment was all through an XXXX credit card/account with tenancy of 20+ years. They stated that because the transactions were made through XXXX, they could not take any money from XXXX for a chargeback, or complete a reversal/freeze as the charges were made over 24 hours before notifying the company. I called XXXX again hours later, as I never received an email I was said to use to submit evidence. I had to emphasize that I wanted to add as much information as possible to the case to aid in faster processing, as it was possible the impersonator already moved the money. I was finally sent an email to provide any documents. On XX/XX/XXXX, I made a report to my local police station to document the case as a third-degree felony of Fraud and Theft in the state of NJ. I contacted the impersonator to provide any verification if they wanted to receive any more money they were requesting. They provided a visibly fake New Jersey ID. I was recommended not to meet up with them, contact them, or otherwise engage. All contact with the impersonator was halted this day. On XX/XX/XXXX, a XXXX Account Specialist responded back about the situation with this email : You have a new message from XXXX regarding request # XXXX. To respond, simply reply to this email. Hello XXXX, Thank you for reporting this activity! We take these reports seriously and will review the other party 's account. However, we are not able to discuss the specifics due to our Privacy Policy. Unfortunately, based on the information you've provided, it sounds like the person you were transacting with did not fulfill their end of the transaction. For resolution, we first recommend that you reach out to the recipient of the payment, as we are not able to provide reimbursement or mediation in this instance. We want to make sure people using XXXX can feel confident when making or receiving payment for a purchase. Whether youre buying something in a store using your XXXX XXXX code or selling something to another XXXX user, we want to do what we can to help if something goes wrong. You can learn more about whats covered in the XXXX Purchase Protection program on our website. If you are unable to contact this person, you may consider filing a report with your local law enforcement agency. Once you have filed a police report, to reach the XXXX Support team, go to Get Help in your XXXX app Settings and select Chat With Us. Our Help Center is available 24/7, where you can find answers to frequently asked questions. We'll provide you with the details needed to submit the report to us. Please keep in mind that when transacting with people whom you don't know or trust there is always the potential for problems to arise. We encourage you to review this article on our Help Center for some information on how to avoid this type of issue in the future. I apologize that we are unable to assist further with this matter. Regards, XXXX I Account Specialist @ XXXX It is now XX/XX/XXXX as I write this report, a week since the situation began. By submitting this report to the CFPB, and a police report, I am escalating the matter further to receive proper action from the companies.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation