Paying with PayPal or a Credit Card Is More Secure?

Nov 29, 2023 By Triston Martin

Does PayPal offer the same level of security as a credit card? PayPal's sole responsibility is to facilitate secure transactions. However, as the company grows, so make the difficulties. The number of PayPal users is estimated at 392 million, and the company offers a variety of services and goods. 1 Each one is designed to ensure that money may be transferred online or in person, safely and securely.


Since 1998, PayPal has been a popular payment method for eBay purchases. By now, it's unlikely that PayPal would still be in use if it weren't as safe as other payment methods like credit cards or cash.



What PayPal Provides


PayPal has been eBay's default payment method to this day. As a result, it is also the sixth most popular payment option for online shops (as of August 2019).


Other goods allow users to send or receive money through it. They include:


  • You can pay with your phone's built-in contactless reader using PayPal's mobile app.
  • For ordinary day-to-day transactions and personal money transfers, Venmo is a popular mobile app.
  • One of the most popular electronic money transfer apps globally is 5 Xoom, a person-to-person payment app.
  • Online or in-store, the PayPal Cash Card is a MasterCard debit card.
  • PayPal provides two credit cards from Synchrony Bank, both issued by PayPal. Synchrony offers a line of credit as an additional service.
  • Paying for goods and services using bitcoin was made possible in 2020 by PayPal's entry into the market.


Is PayPal a Safe Method of Payment?


End-to-end encryption is used for all PayPal transaction data, preventing any hacker from obtaining sensitive information as it passes from buyer to seller. This implies that even the recipient will not access your financial information.


PayPal app users have the option of using a second form of authentication for every transaction. A temporary security code will be sent to your phone to activate the Security Key function. You'll input this code with your password.


Which is Safer, Using PayPal or a Credit Card?



These days, PayPal's computerized transaction methods are the gold standard. Not all banks that offer credit cards are required to follow industry standards.


PayPal even rewards hackers who discover security flaws in its systems—a practice known as "ethical hacking" in the industry. "If you care about the product [and] you care about your customers, you care about your customers' security—this is what you have to do," says Dean Turner, head of security intelligence at PayPal.


Are Credit Cards Secured?


Credit card firms have criticized PayPal's cyber security measures in the past. There is no financial incentive for hackers to report security problems, for example, to the Financial Services Roundtable.


Getting started with Credit Card Theft


"Card present" and "card not present" fraud are the two most common types of consumer credit fraud.


14 When a physical card is taken, it is utilized by an individual. Information accepted and used is referred to as "theft." As a result, it's increasingly being used to conduct online transactions rapidly and covertly.


Credit card issuers have the most incentive to avoid both forms of fraud. It doesn't matter how much you charge. In the United States, your liability is capped at $50. Aside from the annoyance and severe credit rating harm, there are additional substantial negatives for customers of credit card security breaches.


Preventing Card Fraud


Most credit card firms have spent considerably on cutting-edge security technologies to keep pace with PayPal and other industry leaders. It's important to note that not all credit card companies are the same.


Switching from a magnetic stripe to a chip placed into a reader to make a transaction has been the most significant shift in "card present" anti-fraud technology. The card's microchip encrypts the data it delivers, making it more challenging to steal.


Using a credit card at a business is now more secure thanks to EMV, a new technology that protects your personal information during transmission. For example, while making online transactions, the user has some of the duty of ensuring their safety.


Breach of PayPal and Credit Card Data


Credit card data breaches appear to be increasing at an alarming rate. In this case, it seems that businesses accepting credit cards are to blame rather than credit card companies. Capital One, TJX Companies, and The Home Depot have all been victims of significant data breaches.


Malware aimed at targeting point-of-sale equipment appears to be the source of the problem in these and many other instances. A hacker might easily steal credit card information stored by the merchant.


However, recently PayPal's security standards have been questioned. The ethical hackers bypassed some of PayPal's security mechanisms, such as the one-time pin and two-factor authentication, which identified ways to do so (2FA). PayPal is said to have shrugged off the problems.


What's the Deal With PayPal?


A public corporation, PayPal Holdings Inc., has been listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. eBay bought it shortly after its initial public offering in 2002. PayPal's growth was once quicker than that of its parent firm. As of 2014, eBay has chosen to split it off as a separate public business.


PayPal has bought several other companies in addition to Xoom. Honey Science Corp., an online couponing site; iZettle, a payments processor; and Braintree, a mobile payment app, are among the companies mentioned.

Related Articles