Don’t wait to change these settings to get the most out of PayPal and Venmo transfers.
People have been waiting for years, and it’s finally here: Two of the most popular payment platforms, PayPal and Venmo, are letting you send direct payments between them. The feature is rolling out right now, so keep your apps updated — and watch for this one important privacy switch to flip.
This payment app collaboration has been in the works since PayPal bought Venmo in 2014. Now that you’re finally able to use both apps synergistically, you’ll want to make sure you’ve made all the changes you should have when you first signed up to protect your privacy.
You can now search for a Venmo user from your PayPal app (and vice versa) and send cash directly to the person with a few taps. But if you’re going to do that, you’re going to first want to make sure you’ve got all your ducks in a row and the correct settings integrated into your game. Here’s what you should do first before using the apps and switching between them.
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Keep your privacy and visibility options in mind
Venmo will be adding a privacy feature to limit who can find you with PayPal.
Longtime Venmo users will remember how annoying it was to have Venmo automatically make payment details public to everyone you connect with, something Venmo has improved in recent years, but which can still be a source of frustration.
We’ll have to wait until November to investigate every detail, but there is a critical visibility setting that all users should know about. It looks like PayPal users can find any Venmo user if they have the correct phone number, which could make specific scams easier or lead to spam.
You can adjust this option by heading into your Venmo app, choosing Settings (the gear icon), then Privacy, then navigating to your Find Me options, where you can restrict who can find you on PayPal. Just don’t do it quite yet: Expect a Venmo update in November to make this option available.
