A former bank teller has revealed which transaction apps are the safest and warns of the popular money-changing apps you shouldn’t use — including using cell only with friends and family.
Former US bank teller and TikToker Sidney Bean explains which transaction apps protect your money in her latest video on her TikTok channel, where she has over 115,000 followers.
From only using PayPal for international transactions to never using cell with someone you don’t know, Sidney explained why these transaction apps might not help you when you’re being scammed and which apps you can rely on .
In response to a comment asking her, “Which transactional apps are safe?” the TikToker described why you should or shouldn’t trust apps like Venmo, PayPal,zelle and Cash App.
Former US bank teller and TikToker Sidney Bean revealed which transaction apps are the safest and which ones not to use
She explained that she uses and likes Venmo, but “never keeps money in it because it’s not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.”
She said she only uses PayPal for “international transactions” because it’s “cheaper,” but the transaction app sees “a lot of scams.”
Avoid the scammers! Here are the currency exchange apps you should and shouldn’t be using
- Venmo: Former bank teller says this app is good for transferring money but that you should never store money in it.
- Cash App: Sidney noted that you should never use Cash App as there are too many scams out there.
- PayPal: The former bank employee said PayPal should only be used in international transactions.
- Cell: Sidney said that cell should only be used with close friends or family as it is a popular site for scammers.
“Here are the transaction apps I use and don’t use as a former bank teller,” she said at the beginning of her video.
The former bank teller first started by describing popular transaction app Venmo, noting that she “uses” it but “never” keeps money in it.
“I use Venmo, but I never store money there because it’s not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
“Also, I connect it directly to my debit card, so if it’s fraudulently accessed, I only have to replace my debit card and not my entire bank account that’s linked to it.
“And every time I make a transaction on Venmo, it goes straight to my debit card.”
Sidney then explained that this means that if she ever had to dispute a transaction, she could do so with both Venmo and her bank.
Venmo was released in 2012 and has grown in popularity over the years with over 50 million users. So it seems like many agree with the former bank teller when it comes to the currency exchange app.
Next, Sidney explained why she stays away from Cash App.
“I do not use [Cash App]i have filed way too many claims, i have seen way too many scams targeting cash app users and i have also seen people who keep their money in cash app and then like constantly getting it confiscated or frozen and them just never look back.’
And while she doesn’t recommend using Cash App if it’s linked to your debit card, she has found that if you have a Cash App card, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, insures it — which means it’s your Money in it protects in case of a bank failure.
“I use PayPal, but only for international transactions, because it’s accepted worldwide, it’s fairly common in other countries, and it’s much cheaper to make a PayPal transaction than an international transaction through your bank.”
Sidney explained that she stays away from Cash App because she’s seen “way too many scams” and realized people “never get their money back.”
Sidney issued a warning to those who use cell, noting that users should only use cell with someone they know as it is a popular site for scammers
Sidney also noted that PayPal is a great option because you’re able to “draft an invoice” and have people pay right on it.
She added that PayPal isn’t FDIC-insured and that she’s seen “a lot of scams” so she doesn’t “use it that often.”
When it came to the last transaction app the former bank teller reported on, she issued a sharp warning to those who use cell.
“Never send a cell to someone you don’t know”, you won’t get the money back, it’s gone.
“The banks don’t care if you cheated through cell, they don’t care if you weren’t happy with what you bought through cell, they will only refund your money if the bank made a mistake and it is detectable.
“And scammers know that, that’s why scammers love cell,” Sidney said at the end of her video.
The ex-bank teller’s warning comes after it was reported that a long line of users have been scammed by scammers posing as bank teller.
The money exchange app scam takes money directly from users’ accounts as thieves call users and claim that there has been a fraudulent transaction and that they are setting the wrong charges.
After posing as bank employees and asking users if they wanted SMS notifications about scams, the scammers sent users a “registration code” to “verify their identity,” and then used that code to hack their accounts .
Users praised the former bank teller for her tips to help them avoid scammers and even agreed, noting they’d seen the same scams
Users praised the former bank teller for her tips to help them avoid scammers and even agreed, noting they’d seen the same scams.
One user said: “Right. Only use cell if you know the person.’
“As a fraud analyst for a major bank, thank you for publishing this. I could tell you horror stories,” another person wrote.
Another user added: “As a current bank teller, I can confirm that.”
One person commented: “Oh I need to convert Venmo to a debit card. Great tip!’