More customers complain of being scammed through Cash App
HOUSTON - More people are complaining about being scammed through the mobile payment app Cash App by callers posing as customer service.
The Federal Trade Commission and Better Business Bureau say they received thousands of complaints a year about scams conducted through Cash App.
"I'm extremely angry," said Jim Collier.
Collier says he thought he paid a friend $80 through Cash App. When the friend said he didn't receive it, Collier sent him a screenshot of the payment.
"He finally looked at the screenshot and he said, that's not me. And that's when I realized, uh oh, there's a problem," said Collier.
Collier then says he got a call from someone saying they were with Cash App customer service, asking him to download another app onto his phone to fix the problem.
"I saw $150 cash gone out of my account and I was like, 'Whoa, whoa, whoa! You just pulled $150 out of my account. Put it back!'" he recalled.
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"It was a woman on the other line who said she was with Cash App, and someone's trying to hack into my account," said Emanuel Dean.
Dean tells us a caller who said she was with Cash App asked for his code.
"She 'made it more secure,'" said Dean, making air quotes with his hands. "And we got off the phone and probably an hour later, money was being siphoned from my account as if I was doing it. That $900 one, then a $1,300, then a $500."
Scams purported through Cash App have been reported to the FTC and the BBB for the last few years. So we asked Cash App what they're doing about it.
A Cash App spokesperson sent us this statement: "Preventing fraud is critically important to Cash App. We continue to invest in and bolster fraud-fighting resources by both increasing staffing and adopting new technology. We are constantly improving systems and controls to help prevent, detect, and report bad activity on the platform."
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In addition to educating customers about scams on their app, website, and social media accounts, Cash App says they also send customers texts when they spot suspicious log-ins. The company says they send two prompts before letting customers send money to someone not on their contact list. And Cash App says they never call customers asking for information, such as codes.
Bean says he complained to Cash App on its Twitter page, a lot, and got his money back. But both men say they don't feel Cash App is doing enough to protect customers.
"That is your problem, you need to do better. And if Cash App says we'll never call you, it doesn't matter," said Bean.
"If you do business with these people, stop. If they lose enough customers, they will stop this nonsense," said Collier.
If you are scammed, Cash App says to report it to Cash App Support through their app or website. Victims should also report it to the Federal Trade Commission.