How my Paypal account got closed down

Barely over a month since my Paypal account was hacked and restored, I once again encountered a disastrous incident — this time, Paypal emailed me saying they have placed the account on Limited Access.

So I logged in to my account to check what it is and got this message:

Jul 20, 2011: Our system detected that multiple PayPal accounts contain registration information similar to yours. Our User Agreement allows PayPal users to have one Personal account and one Premier or Business account. To return your account to regular standing, we will need to confirm some of the information on your account.

In my entire life, I’ve only created this one single account with Paypal and have not made any new ones with the same credentials. This could have been done by someone else and using my personal details.

Then it dawned on me that the hacker that got into my account could be the culprit. You see, after my Paypal account was restored back in June, I activated the 2-step verification with GMail that’s linked to my primary Paypal account. That made access to my email and my Paypal account way more secure.

However, the hacker still attempted to retrieve my Paypal password by activating the “Forgot Password” feature. This probably happened about 4 or 5 times in the last 4 weeks and I thought he/she could do no more harm since my GMail is tightly secured. He/she can waste all the time in the world trying to gain access to my account to no avail.

Then, this incident happened.

I guess, because of all the failed attempts and frustration to get into my account, the hacker decided to force Paypal to limit or close my account.

Since my personal information has already been exposed, the hacker would just register for a new Paypal account using my name, address and some other personal details. The registration process must have been done multiple times which raised a flag into Paypal’s system.

That process also flagged my original account causing it to be set at Limited Access. How easy way that, huh?

So I dutifully contacted @askpaypal for help in resolving this issue and get my account back to normal. They’ve responded quickly but sent me this email:

For the safety and security of the PayPal network, we often review accounts for potential risks. After reviewing your account, we have decided to close it because of security issues.

Money in your PayPal account will be held for 180 days. After 180 days, we’ll email you information on how to receive your funds.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

Can’t believe that’s how easy it is to get someone’s Paypal acocunt to be closed down.

I sent another message to @askpaypal so that they may be able to turn this around and they said they’re going to call me. Still waiting for that call.

For the meantime, I am without any Paypal account to use. What a bummer.

Update: Paypal has restored my account back.

Hello Abraham Olandres,

Our review is complete and we have restored your account.

We appreciate your patience and thank you for your help in making PayPal
the safest and most trusted online payment solution.

Thanks,

PayPal