Cash App

So far everything sounds good. The apps are convenient, may give you discounts, allow you to begin investing, and so much more. But is there anything to worry about? Any risks?

Cash App and its competitors all provide sophisticated encryption to protect your transaction and various security tools like Face or Touch ID and PIN codes to prevent other people from gaining access to your account.

But, any funds you store on cash app is not insured by the FDIC. If you make a mistake and put in the wrong amount, or send it to the wrong number, your money may be gone. The company has no liability to try to get payments you authorized returned, although they should try to help in the case of user error.

If someone scams you, by offering you the money, goods, or services in return for Cash App payments that you authorize, your money is gone. Worse, if you have your app connected to your bank account, a good scammer can drain your bank account as well.

A recent study estimated that scammers have stolen more than $1 billion in 2021, with the average loss of $2,000.

How do they do it:

• They impersonate customer support, saying someone is using your account, and ask for your account information to stop the transactions.
  • Be aware – no one from a bank or money transfer service will call you and ask for personal information, such as your Cash App Pin or sign-in data. Hang up. If you are worried, go to your bank’s site and check your account information.
  • This also applies to Amazon transactions. Do not click on the link provided on the text or given to you by a customer rep. Hang up. Go directly to the Amazon site you normally use, and check your order history. You’ll be able to verify that no one else is using your account.
• They offer to sell you expensive items at a large discount. Or to sell you hard to get tickets to a “hot” event if you pay through Cash App.
  • Cash App warns its customers not to send a payment to anyone you don’t know without verifying that it is legitimate.
• They promise high returns on money you invest with them, even promising to double the amount. They may return your money, along with the “earnings” they promised you, to your Cash App to prove they are a legitimate company. If it sounds too good to be true, it’s a sure sign that it is a scam, especially if they contact you thru Cash App. The next time you send them MORE money, it will disappear.
  • Avoid being tricked by not sending money to anyone you do not know and trust.
• A good scammer can find your Cash App name and hijack your account if you don’t follow good password security. They can even buy password lists on the dark web and try them out on your online accounts.
  • Protect your Cash App account by creating strong, unique passwords and by enabling the two-factor authentication.
• Romance scams have been around a long time. The scammer finds a victim on a dating site and eventually asks for money to cover some kind of emergency. The only thing that has changed is that now the scammer asks for the money to be sent by Cash App.
  • Dating sites can be a good way to meet people. But don’t ever give out any financial information or share things like your social security or bank account information. Do not send the money. If they ask for money for an “emergency”, it is probably a scam.