Use payment apps like Venmo, Zelle and CashApp? Here's how to protect yourself from scammers

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) payment platforms — such as Zelle, Venmo, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Facebook Payments and Cash App — make it convenient to send someone money from your checking account. Unfortunately, scammers have now discovered them.

Fraud fighters at the National Consumers League and AARP are getting a growing number of complaints from people who have lost money to crooks using P2P apps.

“Because money can be transferred so quickly into someone else’s bank account, these P2P platforms are the perfect payment mechanism for scammers,” said John Breyault at Fraud.org (a project of the National Consumers League). “All you need to get the money is a cellphone number or email address. That’s why it’s so important for people to be really careful when they’re using these apps.”

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