How to Stay Safe Using Digital Payment Apps

By Dawn Kellogg

There’s no doubt, the convenience of using cash apps to pay family and friends cannot be underestimated. According to a survey by SMS marketing platform, SimpleTexting, 6 in 10 people prefer to use apps, compared to 8% who like to pay in cash.

Popular payment apps such as PayPal, Cashapp, Snapcash, Venmo, GooglePay, and Zelle (used by The Summit) far exceed usage of wire transfers and checks.

PayPal, the oldest and most experienced app, does not require users to directly enter credit card information with an unknown vendor, and offers guarantees if a transaction turns out to be fraudulent, which protects you when you are purchasing items online. Apps such as Venmo and Zelle are ideal for use among your trusted network of friends and family.

As with any online account, it’s important to stay safe to avoid scams and minimize fees. Here are some tips:

Just as you would with any online account, use a strong password with a mix of letters, numbers, and symbols. Use a unique password for every account and don’t share passwords with others.

If available, set up a two-factor authentication in your account settings. This sends a code via email or text which must be entered before you can log in or send money.

Understand how an app will help out if there’s a problem with a payment or if a seller doesn’t deliver your purchase as promised.

Don’t give apps any more information than necessary. For example, photos and phone numbers are optional on many apps. Consider using an alias for your name and consider setting up an email address in that alias name to register your account. That way, if your account is hacked, fraudsters won’t have access to your primary email which may be linked to other accounts and services.

Send money only to people you know. On most cash apps, once you press the “send” button, there’s no way to get your money back if you discover you’ve made an incorrect payment or been scammed.

Minimize your account balance. Cash apps generally allow you to keep a balance, but you don’t have to. By keeping your cash app account balance low, you won’t risk losing a large amount of money if your account gets hacked.

Keep payments private. Some apps have a social network aspect to them that allows users to make transactions public. But even though you think you’ve limited your payment details to your friends, more people than you think (e.g. friends of friends) may be able to view that information. It doesn’t hurt to have an extra layer of privacy around who you’re sending money to and receiving money from.

Use public Wi-Fi cautiously. Using the free public Wi-Fi at your favorite neighborhood coffee shop may save you some gigabytes on your data plan, but it can come with risks. If you do choose to log onto the coffee shop’s free Wi-Fi guest network, make sure you don’t log onto any secure sites, such as your mobile or online banking sites.

Be wary of requests from organizations, financial institutions, or government agencies using a digital cash app platform to settle payments and/or reimbursements.  These parties will typically not request payment through digital cash app platforms.

Reduce your payment fees. Most cash apps don’t charge a fee for sending money to another person using an account balance, bank transfer, or debit card. Sometimes you will incur a fee from both the app and your credit card company to transfer cash using your credit card. Apps will also try to get you to pay them in order to send or receive your funds faster. If you don’t need an expedited transfer, sending money to and from your bank account is usually free.

Avoid payment app scams. Scammers do target payment apps by sending phishing emails to make it look like an account has been locked. If you are concerned, open the app from your phone or type in the website in a new tab to check legitimacy. Don’t click on random emails! Keep an eye out for this and other scams.

Do your homework. Take time to review the app’s privacy policy. See what data they collect and share. If you aren’t comfortable with their policies/permissions, check out a different cash app.

Cash apps are convenient, but like any other online account, they work best when you make sure to protect yourself!

The Summit pleased to partner with Zelle to bring you a fast, safe, and easy way to send and receive money with friends, family, and other people that you trust. Zelle is available right from our online and mobile banking app, so members don’t need to download anything new to start sending and receiving money!