Online Threat Alerts (OTA) - Alerting you to scams and frauds.

"Carmen Russo" PayPal Scam Message
Carmen Russo PayPal Scam Message

If you received a message that appears to be from a "Carmen Russo", claiming your PayPal account processed a payout by a small deposit($0.02), DO NOT call the fake customer service telephone number in it. The message is a scam, and the telephone is not associated with PayPal. The number is linked to a call center operated by scammers pretending to be from PayPal.

The PayPal Scam Message

Carmen Russo Scam PayPal

Even if the message has your full name and appears to have been sent from a legitimate PayPal email address, do not call the telephone number. The clever part of this scam is that the scammer sent an actual transaction of 2 cents from PayPal to make the scam look legit. If you go to your PayPal account, you will see the transaction. But the trick is to convince you into calling the bogus customer/support telephone number (1-800-613-9844).

If You Were Tricked

If you were tricked into calling the fake number and giving the scammers your account credentials or banking information, please change your account passwords or contact your bank for help.

Here is PayPal's legitimate Customer Support information, if you need help:

  • 1-888-221-1161

    Customer Service Hours: 6:00 AM PST to 6:00 PM PST Monday through Sunday

  • Message them: 1-402-935-2050 (if calling from outside the U.S.)
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