Are You Using Peer-to-Peer Payments Safely?

Peer-to-peer (P2P) payments like Venmo, PayPal, Zelle^®, and Cash App let you send, receive, or request payments to and from other people — all from your cell phone. People use them for everything from splitting restaurant tabs to utility payments between roommates.

The convenience of these mobile payments has made them extremely popular. A 2021 eMarketer report stated that by the end of 2023, the transaction value of all U.S. P2P payments will exceed $1 trillion. With this explosive growth, we want to ensure you’re aware of how to keep your financial security top-of-mind when using P2P payments.

Only send money to people you trust 

We get it — it seems so simple to pay someone from the Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist via one of these P2P payment options. Unfortunately, it’s potentially high-risk to do so.

Most P2P services don’t include purchase protection for any authorized payments you make within those payment systems. That means if you don’t receive an item you paid for, you’re taking on the associated risks once you authorize your payment and may not get your money back.

Sign up for transaction notifications

Every P2P payment option will allow you to get notified about every transaction you make with it. If yours doesn’t automatically notify you, we strongly recommend digging into the settings of whatever platform you use to ensure you get a text or email each time you make a payment.

Triple check payment details before authorizing

While it’s convenient to use someone’s phone number, email address, or username to send them money, one misspelling or typo could send your money to an unintended recipient.

Make sure the information you’re using is 100% accurate before you send anyone money.

Treat P2P payments like cash

P2P payment services treat your transfers like cash — giving the recipient near-instant access to the transferred money. That means – like cash – once you send the money, you’ll likely have a hard time getting it back unless both parties agree and work together.

That’s why we recommend you think of every P2P transaction as if you’re handing over that amount in cash to the recipient.

Clearview and Zelle

We partnered with Zelle so you can easily send money to friends, family, and others you trust¹. Now that you know how to safely use it, check out how it works in digital banking.
 

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Copyright © 2021 . All rights reserved. Zelle and the Zelle related marks are wholly owned by Early Warning Services, LLC and are used herein under license.

1. Must have a bank account in the U.S. to use Zelle