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PayPal has been asked by the IRS via court order to provide records regarding the use of offshore credit cards. The request is part of the IRS’s off shore compliance program.  Many members of the online gambling community are protesting the action, calling it violation of Internet privacy. PayPal was involved with online gambling from 2000-2001, but the IRS claims they are simply trying to bust tax evaders who failed to report offshore accounts. While the popular online payment system says they value their member’s privacy, they have agreed to turn over the records, saying they feel obligated to do so.

“In my opinion this is a huge breach of personal privacy - they should not be allowed to comb through citizens’ accounts on a fishing expedition for illegal activity,” one tax consultant told Gambling911.com, asking to remain anonymous.  “I have a feeling, that while they were only in the gambling industry for a year - information obtained from this sweep could be used to nail a lot of people on unclaimed income.”

The order came from the US District Court for the Northern District of California and was entitled “In The Matters of the Tax Liabilities of John Does.”

Read [Gambling911]

eBay has given Skype one more year to prove its viability and relevance to eBay’s online auction service. Skype was acquired by eBay with the hopes of the VoIP company helping boosts its online commerce business. However, since its acquisition, Skype failed to live up to eBay’s expectation of bringing more tie-ins between Skype and eBay’s online payment system through call-billing arrangement.

Citing an interview with the Financial Times, News.com reports that eBay CEO John Donahue said that eBay is giving Skype until the end of this year to test its synergies and if the synergies are strong, eBay will keep Skype in its portfolio. For eBay, its not a question of whether Skype is generating revenue for the company but more on the question of whether Skype blends well with eBay and its other web products and services.

In fact, Skype has managed to generate around $126 million in revenues during the first quarter of this year, which is a 61-percent increase from previous year’s first quarter revenue. Profit wise, it is expected to generate $500 million and still manage to post a profit. But this seems to be not enough for eBay to keep Skype. It wants something more from the PC-to-PC calling service. And whether Skype can give what eBay wants remains to be seen. Skype has a few more months to shape up, before it finds itself lost in limbo or still with eBay’s care and comfort.

Read [CNET]

It looks like we may have all misinterpreted PayPal’s announcement that it will block users who are using old browsers when doing online transactions at PayPal. Some reports have included Apple’s Safari browser as among those that will be blocked by PayPal.

PayPal has denied this report by saying that it has no intention of blocking current versions of any browsers that include the Safari browser from accessing it’s site. And to clarify, it will only block customers from logging into the PayPal when using obsolete browsers on outdated or unsupported operating systems, such as IE4 running on Windows 98.

Actually, the confusion may have started when reports cited that the Safari browser does not support Extended Validation SSL Certificates.

So there, the confusion is cleared and clarified. Safari users can still access PayPal’s site using their trusty browser. End of story.

Via [Mac Daily News]

As outlined in a white paper on managing phishing written by its risk management unit, PayPal is set to implement a new policy that will block users from using PayPal from “unsafe browsers.” These browsers include Internet Explorer 4 and 5 and other older version browsers. But don’t worry if you are still using anything unsafe, because PayPal will first warn you about the browser. If you insist on trying to use it even after you were warned, then that’s the time when PayPal will step in and block you from accessing its site.

PayPal said that old browsers such as IE 4 are very vulnerable to phishing attacks since they lack the security and safety features of their newer versions which ward off phishing and other forms of online attacks. PayPal is encouraging users to use browsers which support the Extended Validation SSL certification when doing their PayPal transactions. These browsers prompt users by turning the address bar of the browser green when they are browsing a legitimate site. These browsers include the latest versions of IE and Firefox. Apple’s Safari browser for Mac and PC unfortunately does not support EV SSL certificates at this time.

Read [BBC News]

In early December, OLPC offered up some details on when you would be able to expect your XO Laptop. Those who placed their order early, which was on or before November 15, 2007 should have received their XO before 2007 was over, but for many that date came and went without a delivery. This time the delay, or lack of delivery was due to an issue with PayPal. It seems that when the orders were placed the shipping address did not always make it over to OLPC.

This one can easily be blamed on PayPal, however its something that the folks over at OLPC should have noticed was missing. If you were someone who took advantage of the G1G1 program and your delivery date has come and gone, you may want to make sure your shipping address is on file with customer service over at OLPC.

Read [PC World] Via [Consumerist]

Ever since Paypal became the most used Internet payment site, they have had a huge problem with phishing schemes.  Now, in an effort to combat such schemes, Paypal has turned to their new Security Key, a keychain fob similar to the ones that online banks have been using for years.

With the new device, a unique one-time-use password is generated every 30 seconds.  Users will be prompted for not only their username (or email) and password as before, but they will also be asked to enter in this new number.  Regular users will be asked to pay $5 for the fob, while business users will be offered one for free.  The new layer of security may seem like it is indestructable, but as Jason from Gizmodo points out, there are two scenerios where the Security Key’s number will no longer matter.

In one scenerio, the phishers could somehow gain knowledge of your specific Security Key’s algorithm.  This is obviously very unlikely since the chance of finding any sequence in a series of 6 random numbers is near impossible.  The next scenerio is if a user is tricked into entering their username, password, and keygen in a phishing site, the phishers will have 30 seconds to login to Paypal.  I’d say this is VERY likely to happen, although it will still cut out a majority of phishing attacks that exist today.  Paypal, you’re off to a good start, but there’s still some work to be done.

Read [Paypal] Via [jkOnTheRun]

A screen shot from the eBay developers conference shows that you will soon be able to send people money via Skype. eBay, if you do not know, owns Skype and PayPal. Until now there has been very little integration of the VoIP service into the two other clients--making the acquisition appear to be a poor decision.

eBay also announced its pilot integration of Skype. Beginning yesterday, US eBay sellers will have the option of adding a SkypeMe button to individual item listings in 14 select categories. Prospective buyers will then be able to contact the sellers by voice or instant messaging. Users can currently add a SkypeMe button to their personal profile, but not to individual items for sale.

With this new integration you can essentially live your life without ever leaving your home. You can buy whatever you like on eBay, resell it for more, chat with sellers and buyers, and then pay and accept payments via PayPal.

Ahh, the life of an internet junkie.

Read [Random Good Stuff]
Read [TechCrunch]

A Google PayPal competitor has been rumored for a very long time and we have good reason to believe that it will surface on June 28th as GBuy (as dubbed most recently by Forbes). Unlike Google Payments, which was integrated into Google Base, GBuy will be intended for merchants who have their own online store, but transactions will be completed through Google’s servers. Forbes quotes analyst Jordan Rohan, who says this would allow Google to “capture e-commerce transaction data, driving more precise targeting in future searches.” Rohan also believes Google will mark merchants who accept payment through GBuy as “trusted GBuy merchants” when they’re listed in Google search results.

Google’s payment system will tell Google which sites people buy from. If sites are ranked by relevance, click through rate and bid right now, imagine if Google could also account for how many people actually bought something. By taking this into account when providing results, it will save us a lot of time as shoppers and reward the merchants that have better products, a better website, better prices, or even more security.

Read [Download Squad]
Read [Post Bubble]

eBay was once the biggest player out there with appropriate buzz all the time, but recently the site has become one of the most cluttered portals on the internet and has faced new competition from Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google. Well companies that survived the burst typically don’t die very quickly, eBay included. The auction folks have been working hard at a cleaner looking site that allows you to get through your shopping faster, without bidding, and they are even going the extra step to provide live chat customer service.

With eBay Express it’s faster and easier than ever to breeze through all your shopping. Find the best deals on everything from designer jeans to a complete home theater system.

• Everything on eBay Express is offered at a fixed price by top eBay sellers.


• Get what you want now — no bidding, no waiting. Buy from multiple eBay Express merchants.


• Pay for everything — including shipping—in a single, secure payment using PayPal or your credit card.


• Every transaction is safe, secure, and fully covered by free Buyer Protection.


• On eBay Express, you’re always just one click away from help — including live chat with an eBay Express customer service specialist.

Start shopping [eBay Express]