Is it Safe to Give PayPal My SSN?

PayPal is one of the most popular online payment systems that one uses to transfer money across countries. However, when you register on PayPal, you will be asked to enter specific details, including your bank details, card details, contact information, and SSN. 

SSN stands for Social Security Number and is the key to your identity. Many people may seem to be a privacy concerns when PayPal asks for the SSN. If you have been wondering why PayPal is asking for SSN, whether it is safe to give PayPal your SSN or not, then this article will help you with it.

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Why PayPal Asks For Your SSN?

PayPal asks for your SSN because it needs the sales or credit information data. SSN is required for sales information; that’s why only sellers have to provide their SSN. If you are a buyer, you can get ahead without having to provide your SSN. 

PayPal sends IRS the senders with $20,000 sales per year of 200 selling transactions, for which SSN is required. PayPal sellers having sales of $20,000 per year or having 200 selling transactions annually will have to give SSN to PayPal. The alternative to providing SSN will be EIN. 

You won’t have to provide your SSN unless you want PayPal Credit as a buyer. When you apply for credit, you will have to submit the last four digits of your SSN. However, when you use the PayPal debit Mastercard, you must enter your entire SSN.

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Is it Necessary to Give SSN?

As discussed above, buyers do not need to provide their SSN until they apply for a PayPal debit Mastercard or PayPal credit. If you have a business account, you will have to provide your SSN if you have sales of $20,000 per year or have 200 selling transactions annually. 

When you create a PayPal account, you will have to verify your identity with your details, including your bank account, debit/credit card information, and contact information. PayPal uses all the information provided by the users to verify them, so SSN is not required. 

If you are asked to enter your SSN, you will have to enter it. Business accounts do have the option to use EIN instead of the SSN. 

Is My SSN Secure With PayPal?

Yes, your SSN is completely secure with PayPal and there’s nothing to be worried about it. Not only SSN but all of your data, including your bank information and contact information, is secure.

PayPal stores the user data in secure databases, which cannot be virtually hacked. Moreover, the location of the database is also guarded, so someone unauthorized can’t access the data physically. 

Moreover, your data is encrypted by PayPal when it is stored. This means no one can decode your data. Apart from that, your data is shared by PayPal even when you pay for things.

When it comes to the security of user data, PayPal is one of the most reliable online payment systems. Employees of PayPal only have access to important information needed to help the user. Even the employees don’t have access to user data. 

With that being said, your data, including your SSN, is completely safe. You need not worry about someone unauthorized accessing your SSN. PayPal databases are secure and they store user data safely without having any vulnerability to cyber attacks. 

Final Words

When creating your account on PayPal, you will have to enter your SSN and there is no option to opt-out of it. It is entirely safe to give PayPal your SSN, and there’s nothing to worry about it.

The data stored by PayPal is completely secure, so your information which includes your contact details, bank details, card details, and SSN, won’t be leaked.