Cash is king, as the saying goes, but not many of us carry it around anymore.
Instead, peer-to-peer payment apps like Venmo, PayPal, and Zelle give the convenience of cash right on our phones. But what happens when something goes wrong, maybe a type of scam. Could your hard-earned money be at risk?
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“Once you’ve sent it, you’ve spent it,” Consumer Reports Editor Octavio Blanco said.
That’s what many electronic payment apps tell users. Sure, they’re speedy and convenient, but Consumer Reports warns their lack of user protections – like those offered with most credit cards – can make these services very attractive to fraudsters and risky for consumers.
“The main risk in using a P2P app is that you have no recourse in getting your money back if you send money to a scammer or to the wrong person or if you send the wrong amount because of a typo,” Blanco said.
In 2021, the Federal Trade Commission said there were more than 70,000 reports of fraud and $130 million in losses with mobile payment apps.
And the apps are under fire from consumer advocates demanding protection from fraud and errors for users.
But until that happens, Consumer Reports said one way to protect your payments using P2P apps is to link your credit card to the app and fund your payments through that…
