A former bank employee has revealed which transaction apps are the safest and issued a warning about the popular money exchanging apps you should avoid using – including only using Zelle with friends and family.
Former bank employee and TikToker Sidney Bean, based in the US, explained which transaction apps will protect your money in her latest video posted to her TikTok channel, where she boasts over 115,00 followers.
From only using PayPal for international transactions to never using Zelle with someone you don’t know, Sidney detailed why these transaction apps may not help you if you’re scammed and which apps you can count on.
Responding to a comment that asked her “Which transaction apps are safe?” the TikToker described why you should or shouldn’t trust apps like Venmo, PayPal, Zelle and Cash App.
Former bank employee and TikToker Sidney Bean, based in the US, has revealed which transaction apps are the safest, while explaining the one’s you shouldn’t use
She explained that she uses and likes Venmo but ‘never keeps money in it because it is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’
She said she only uses PayPal for ‘international transactions’ because it’s ‘cheaper’ but that the transaction app does see ‘a lot of scams’
‘Here are the transaction apps that I do and don’t use as a former bank employee,’ she said at the beginning of her video.
The former bank employee first began by detailing the popular transaction app Venmo, noting that she ‘does use it’, but ‘never’ keeps money in it.
‘I do use Venmo, but I never keep money in there because it is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
‘Also, I connect it directly to my debit card so that if it is fraudulently accessed somehow, I only have to replace my debit card and not my entire bank account that’s linked to it.
‘And anytime I’m conducting a transaction on Venmo, its drafted directly through my debit card.’
Sidney then explained this means that if she ever needed to ‘dispute a transaction’, she could do it with both Venmo and her bank.
Venmo was released in 2012 and gained popularity throughout the years and with over 50 million users, so, it seems as though many agree with the former bank employee when it comes to the money exchanging app.
Next up, Sidney explained why she stays away from Cash App.
‘I don’t use [Cash App], I have filed way too many claims, I’ve seen way too many scams directed towards Cash App users, and I’ve also seen people who kept their money in Cash App and then had it totally seized or frozen like constantly and they just never see it back.’
And while she doesn’t recommend using Cash App when linked to your debit card, she did note that if you have a Cash App card, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, does it insure it – which means it protects your money in case there is a bank failure.
‘I do use PayPal, but only for international transactions, because it’s globally accepted, it’s pretty common in other countries and it’s far cheaper to do a PayPal transaction than to do an international transaction through your bank.’
Sidney explained she stays away from Cash App because she’s seen ‘way too many scams’ and noted that people ‘never get their money back’
Sidney issued a warning to those who use Zelle and noted that users should only use Zelle with someone they know because it’s a popular site for scammers
Sidney also noted that PayPal is a great option because you are able to ‘design an invoice’ and have people pay directly to it.
She added that PayPal is not FDIC insured and that she’s seen ‘a lot of scams through it’ so she doesn’t ‘use it that often.’
When it came to the last transaction app the former bank employee was detailing, she issued a stark warning to those using Zelle.
‘Do not ever send a Zelle to someone you don’t know,’ you’re not going to see that money back, it’s gone.
‘The banks don’t care if you scammed through Zelle, they don’t care if you weren’t satisfied with what you bought through Zelle, they are only going to refund your money on a claim if the bank made an error and it’s provable.
‘And scammers know that, that’s why scammers love Zelle, Sidney said at the end of her video.
The former bank employee’s warning comes after a long line of users are reported being scammed through Zelle by fraudsters pretending to be bank employees.
The scam centered around the money exchanging app drains money directly from users accounts as thieves issue a call to users claiming there has been a fraudulent transaction and that they would be shutting down the phony charges.
After posing as bank employees and asking users if they wanted text message alerts about fraud, the fraudsters would send users an ‘enrollment code’ to ‘confirm their identity’ and then use that code to hack their account.
Users praised the former bank employee for her tips that help them avoid scammers and even agreed with her, noting that they have seen the same scams
Users praised the former bank employee for her tips that help them avoid scammers and even agreed with her, noting that they have seen the same scams.
One user said: ‘True. Do not use Zelle unless you know the person.’
‘As a fraud Analyst for a major bank, thank you for putting this out there. I could tell you horror stories,’ another person wrote.
Another user added: ‘As a current bank employee, can confirm.’
One person commented: ‘Oh, need to change Venmo to debit card. Great tip!’
