Whats the beef with Paypal on CGN?

[Moress]

I'm not sure if you're trolling, but regardless...

Why would I be trolling? It's a serious question.

I use them all the time. They are up front about it, and they can run their biz as they like.

I once sold a M48 and the guy paypaled me with Mauser in the memo. My blood ran cold. Nothing happened.

I pretty much agree with this. It's their business, let them run it the way they want.

I guess it comes down to different stroke for different folks however. I stopped going to Walgreens myself because of that Pharamsict they fired for shooting a bad guy in self defense, so I can see where many people are coming from regarding payapl, but I just wanted to know why there was so much bad blood between many CGN users and Paypay.

[chim-chim7]

I have had a Paypal account for many years. I have purchased thousands of dollars of firearm related items and never once had a problem. I pay with Paypal on Gun Broker as well. For me, if the seller does not accept Paypal then I just don't buy anything from them. Sellers can be all anti-Paypal if they want, they are only hurting themselves out of sales. If you are discreet you wont have a problem.

[The Gleam]

"We may close, suspend, or limit your access to your Account or the PayPal Services "

And this has happened to a LOT of people. Paypal has been known to research sales transactions and track the website people had been on by cookies just prior to coming to their website to process a sale - i.e., if they see a Gunbroker or Gunsamerica cookie, they look at the sale more closely for hints of a gun purchase.

I will NOT use Paypal anymore, but if you should - clear your cache before going to the Paypal website, and do NOT make any firearm references in your payment, and log it as a "Services" - make up an invoice number or some other ambiguous reference the seller or buyer will recognize, ahead of the transfer.

They ALSO peruse for-sale sites such as here, Gunbroker/Gunsamerica'Aution Arms looking of auctions or ads that say they will take Paypal and try to link the seller to the Paypal account in question. They'll check the username, or send an inquiry to reveal the seller's email, and check their records - if they figure you out, they then temporarily shut-down your account, and tell you that it will not be opened for use until you remove the offending ad on whatever website. I KNOW THIS TO BE A FACT BECAUSE IT HAPPENED TO ME OVER 6 YEARS AGO right about the time Ebay bought Paypal and made Paypal change their policies to be anti-2nd Amendment!!

That is why you sometimes see "discreet" with "Paypal" spelled funny (so their search doesn't catch it when they search websites for the reference).

I simply don't use Paypal anymore - suckola company with suckola anti-2nd Amendment attitudes. It's not just about "business" or "liability" as then they wouldn't care about funds transfers on gun parts and magazines either.

[The Gleam]

For me, if the seller does not accept Paypal then I just don't buy anything from them. Sellers can be all anti-Paypal if they want, they are only hurting themselves out of sales. If you are discreet you wont have a problem.

Yes, but they may sell other things online elsewhere - not gun related, use Paypal elsewhere, and don't want it closed due to snafu or buyer's reference mistake, or discovery as I explained above. Not everyone is smart in their "discretion".

[odysseus]

They also do not recognize corporations as legal persons. Forcing c corps to open accounts using the identity of one of their officers.

Paypal and Ebay are just plain anti-gun. That's the reason.

Not only that, they are incredibly invasive about personal information and account access.

[The Gleam]

Many people here, myself included, have had their paypal account blocked due to suspected firearms-related transactions. I can show you the emails to prove it.

I was even ultra-careful when logging on to paypal, I would always open a new browser window when logging in to paypal (so that they could not see what site I was coming from) and of course, did not enter any gun-related terms into the transaction. They still snagged my account.

Probably because the OTHER party did not clear their cache or use a separate browser, etc. and they back-tracked to the transaction. Like you, I have the emails to prove their discovery; and for me, it was an OLD ad they found in an archive of Gunsamerica through Google or "Wayback" searches, where ironically the original ad could no longer be viewed on the actual website. I actually had to contact Gunsamerica to have it removed from their archives - which they did. At the time I was doing a lot of Ebay business - antiques, books, gun parts, etc and needed my blocked Paypal access re-opened - not anymore. I could not care less what Paypal does - I rarely if ever use the account. I keep it open for an emergency, but last time I used it was (i think) February 2010.

Now I never sell anything on Ebay - nor buy much either. I stopped selling stuff on Ebay as a whole when they banned gun-parts as that was about 60% of what I sold on their website. If I was posting that, the other stuff also go posted, but not worth it to only post the other stuff.

As it is, maybe I buy on Ebay only once or twice a year for hard-to-find car parts and nothing more. Same goes for Paypal - almost NEVER use that anymore.

[hnoppenberger]

To the op, I am sorry, but honestly, you are an idiot if you cannot see why paypal is horrible in everyway when it comes to anything gun related.

[SuperSet]

Everything that's been said about Paypal is true. The Gleam hit upon their track record. If you have not been caught, you are taking a chance everytime you do it. I've had 2 Paypal accounts locked and have had to open another checking accounts and credit cards just to resign up. I'd boycott their service but there is no better alternative right now for non-firearm purchases. In both cases, the items were from AR15.com EE and the seller didnt mention anything firearms related. My accounts were locked and it was up to me to prove that the items were not suspicious. Terrible policy.

[imtheomegaman]

Paypal sucks, regardless of their gun policy. They side with the first complaint, without any acknowledgment of the facts. They are famous of 'pre emptive', locking of your funds from transactions for three months.

[CnCFunFactory]

Have you tried G-Pal? I have heard they really rock when it comes to Firearm related sales....

[Turbinator]

Have you tried G-Pal? I have heard they really rock when it comes to Firearm related sales....

Hey, now.. come on..

Turby

[m24armorer]

Thanks Meg, glad you did not get elected.

[the_natterjack]

Anyone use Amazon payments? Everyone seems to forget about them.

Brian

[mlevans66]

It's not that Paypal and Ebay are anti-gun, it's that they are anti-lawsuit. With the way companies get blamed for everyone persons mess these companies are afraid to do anything gun related. If some kid where to buy ammo from someone and kill some kid in school then the parents would be blaming everyone from Glock to Paypal about there kids being in danger. The companies are just trying to watch there backside. I used Paypal for a lots of transactions and had no issues. Being mad at Paypal is like being mad at Troy Industries for not sending Ca. persons mags. Want to blame someone? Blame our goverment and the people that voted for those idiots. My two cents.

[a1c]

Don't have anything about your Calguns/AR15.com account that can be linked to your PayPal account. Don't publish your email address. Problem solved.