Among the many mobile apps that have surged in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic is Square Inc.’s popular Cash App, which easily facilitates the transfer of money between users. You may have seen this often on Twitter, for example. Someone is feeling particularly generous and asks people for their Cash App details so they can hand out donations to anyone who’s fallen on hard times. However, this app’s ease of use also means there are several Cash App scams to watch out for, too.
Cash App scams to watch out for
Some of these will sound pretty obvious. Once you’ve stepped back for a moment to consider them objectively, that is.
We should also note, right off the bat, that Cash App is an inherently safe app to use. It’s neither more or less safe “than other legitimate peer-to-peer payment apps such as Venmo and Zelle,” Identity Theft Resource Center president and CEO Eva Velasquez recently told Reader’s Digest. There are even some excellent security tools baked into the app that watch your back, to an extent. Such as an AI-based feature that watches for potential scams. Plus text messages that users get when strange logins are detected, among other tools.
Nevertheless, it’s still easy to get fooled via the app, if you’re not careful. These are some situations, below, to be aware of.
BBB warns of social media scam involving CashApp, Bitcoin – Spectrum News 1 https://t.co/nSXzyiYTft #cryptocurrency #cryptocurrencyeducation #cryptotraders pic.twitter.com/NejWsEcBpX
— Crypto Club (@cryptoclub0) July 4, 2021
Customer support impersonators
One of the downsides to Cash App is that it doesn’t offer live customer support. Not every user knows that. Which is why scammers have conned Cash App customers around the US out of thousands of dollars, claiming to be customer support. That’s according to the Better Business Bureau, by the way. And here’s how you can protect yourself from Cash App scams like this one, according to the service’s website:
“Cash Support will never ask you to provide your sign-in code, PIN, or other sensitive information like your bank account information. Cash Support will also never require you to send a payment, make a purchase, download any application for ‘remote access,’ or complete a ‘test’ transaction of any kind.”
#CashAppFriday fake offers
It’s a Friday tradition for Cash App to hold a contest every Friday that lets users win cash. Perhaps unsurprisingly, though, scores of fake “Cash App Friday” events across social media co-opt the event’s official hashtag. And, thus, they fool people with scam Cash App giveaway events. Hallmarks of this scam include things like asking users to share their login details in order to win.
If you participate in one of these raffles, make sure the #CashAppFriday hashtag you’re following came from an official, verified app from the service.
‘Flipping’ money Cash App scam
This is a classic example of a scam that, from a distance, probably sounds obvious to most people. Nevertheless, people still fall for this one. Basically, it involves people on social media asking for you to send a certain amount of money to them. And then they’ll “flip” it back to you doubled, tripled or more.
Here’s a good rule of thumb to follow to avoid Cash App scams like this one, and to guide pretty much all your behavior on such apps: Be wary of sending money to people you don’t know.
