Venmo newly asking for personal information?

[doctorfaust]

Just received an email from Venmo (I doublechecked that it is not phishing) stating that I needed to 'confirm my identity' by Aug 31 or I would not be able to use the app anymore. The instructions send you to a screen within the app that asks for your Name, Address, SSN and others. The email claims this is to "comply with federal regulation". Anybody know who this is about? A new regulation, or an old one that Venmo wasn't complying with? Not thrilled about giving out any more personal info than necessary so I'll have to consider whether to keep using it.

[neurosphere]

Does this link help?

https://help.venmo.com/hc/en-us/article ... rification

Actually, that link is short on details, other than a link to a federal FDIC law that may or may not be relevant.

Have you been using Venmo for a while? Are you new to it?

[doctorfaust]

Does this link help?

https://help.venmo.com/hc/en-us/article ... rification

Actually, that link is short on details, other than a link to a federal FDIC law that may or may not be relevant.

Have you been using Venmo for a while? Are you new to it?

That's what was confusing to me, I have been using Venmo for ~5 years, and this is the first time I've seen anything like this. Hence why my initial gut reaction was whether this was phishing. But I was also curious as to whether everybody was receiving this or just me for some reason.

[BluesH]

I've been accused of being a dinosaur. That may be true, but I believe I'm an informed and realistic dinosaur -- I've been designing computers, software, and other technology since before the internet existed (specifically, when it was still ARPAnet).

This (the OP) is why I've refused to link my phone to any app that has access to my financial and personal information. Especially the SSN! Much too dangerous on a device that can be easily lost or stolen.

[BrendanP]

I wonder if there's some new regulations or something. I used to use PayPal a lot and they would hold money same as Venmo. Then they changed and needed my SS# to create an account to hold money which I didn't want to do. Instead they just add and subtract money directly from bank accounts now.

[RudyS]

I've been accused of being a dinosaur. That may be true, but I believe I'm an informed and realistic dinosaur -- I've been designing computers, software, and other technology since before the internet existed (specifically, when it was still ARPAnet).

This (the OP) is why I've refused to link my phone to any app that has access to my financial and personal information. Especially the SSN! Much too dangerous on a device that can be easily lost or stolen.

Fellow dinosaur here! I'm pretty comfortable with technology, but I also will not use my phone for anything related to my finances, except for Uber, etc., which has my credit card info.

[HawkeyePierce]

Your phone is almost certainly more secure than any other device you have. An iPhone is fully encrypted and with a proper passcode, nobody's getting in.

[Dmody91]

I got the same thing this morning. Its thru the app so its secure.

[johnnyc321]

Some regulator probably decided it is a bank and must now comply with the patriot act.

[BuckyBadger]

OP is being slightly disingenuous.

It asks for only the last 4 digits of your SSN.

[Speckles]

Are there more secure alternatives to Venmo?

Inquiring dinosaurs want to know. This is asked sincerely.

Dinosaur Specks

[MBB_Boy]

This regulation isn't new, they just haven't been doing it and probably got caught. Or decided that it wasn't worth getting caught later.

Not as uncommon as you think - I work in banking (also as a mgmt consultant before) and know at least 2 household names that weren't dotting their Is and crossing their Ts to a regulators satisfaction/subjective reading of regs. Long story short, they each had to launch a massive effort to get current customers to update/provide additional info (BSA/AML related) or else the accounts had to be closed.

I would not be concerned Venmo is asking for this information, it's a legitimate request

[Godot]

I've been accused of being a dinosaur. That may be true, but I believe I'm an informed and realistic dinosaur -- I've been designing computers, software, and other technology since before the internet existed (specifically, when it was still ARPAnet).

This (the OP) is why I've refused to link my phone to any app that has access to my financial and personal information. Especially the SSN! Much too dangerous on a device that can be easily lost or stolen.

Fellow dinosaur here! I'm pretty comfortable with technology, but I also will not use my phone for anything related to my finances, except for Uber, etc., which has my credit card info.

+1

[MBB_Boy]

Are there more secure alternatives to Venmo?

Inquiring dinosaurs want to know. This is asked sincerely.

Dinosaur Specks

Zelle, same thing but owned and run by a consortium of banks.

However, the implication that Venmo isn't secure isn't one I would agree with. Others are probably in a better position than me to explain the nuts and bolts. I've personally refused to use it - I think the social media thing is stupid, and the product is literally inferior to several options, including PayPal(which ended up buying them, but still has higher transfer limits and works internationally), Zelle (which is literally instant and built in to many bank's native apps) and even the Cash App by Square (which is paired with a "checking" account with some pretty lucrative debit rewards).

[Speckles]

Thank you for the replies. Very helpful!
Specks

[rich126]

I have a landscape guy that wanted to use Venmo and I told him no. I'll either mail a check to him or, when I can, give him cash.

From what I could see Venmo would either charge me a fee to use a credit card or it wanted to be tied to my bank account. Neither option was acceptable to me.

I try my best to limit who deducts money directly from my bank account and right now I don't think anyone does. I don't mind credit cards but I don't see a point in paying extra to use one, especially since it isn't benefiting me.

[MBB_Boy]

If it's helpful, the Square Cash App links to your debit card, as opposed to bank account. Not sure if that's a functional difference for you, but also don't know your rationale

[runner540]

I have a landscape guy that wanted to use Venmo and I told him no. I'll either mail a check to him or, when I can, give him cash.

From what I could see Venmo would either charge me a fee to use a credit card or it wanted to be tied to my bank account. Neither option was acceptable to me.

I try my best to limit who deducts money directly from my bank account and right now I don't think anyone does. I don't mind credit cards but I don't see a point in paying extra to use one, especially since it isn't benefiting me.

No fee to use your debit card.

[rich126]

I have a landscape guy that wanted to use Venmo and I told him no. I'll either mail a check to him or, when I can, give him cash.

From what I could see Venmo would either charge me a fee to use a credit card or it wanted to be tied to my bank account. Neither option was acceptable to me.

I try my best to limit who deducts money directly from my bank account and right now I don't think anyone does. I don't mind credit cards but I don't see a point in paying extra to use one, especially since it isn't benefiting me.

No fee to use your debit card.

Thanks but I never use a debit card for obvious reasons.

[seppatown]

To the self-identified dinosaurs - how are you paying and accepting money in situations that don't use credit cards? How does the nanny, plumber, tutor get paid? Do you write checks?

Venmo is generally a more secure and convenient option, with better tracking to boot.

I've noticed with the baby boomer generation, my parents included (both software engineers!), a sort of unjustified aversion to cloud and digital services. I feel like it has to do with the false narrative of intangible risks they can't see vs the ones that they "can".

Let me paint an outsider's view of my "security-minded" parents: they never shred their mail (which often contains sensitive banking and personal information), write checks left and right, store a paper trail of their entire personal and financial identity at home in unsecured locations, hand out their SSN like candy to their 20 physician specialists, rarely audit their cc statements, and most importantly, never clear their cookies, don't use password managers, and often give their real personal information to to suspect websites and charities.

I, on the other hand, have all my financials stored on my phone (credit cards, venmo, banking, brokerage, ecommerce), and all important documents digitized on dropbox, and have not faced anywhere near the level of credit card fraud and identity theft as them.

Is the underlying security and privacy problem really with apps and the internet?

[neverpanic]

I have been using Venmo for ~5 years, and this is the first time I've seen anything like this.

The Know Your Customer rules for banks and transmitters are significantly more strict today than they were 5 years ago.