After publishing a policy notice that would penalize users for spreading false information, PayPal received negative feedback. Later, the business claimed the posting was inaccurate.
Following the introduction of a contentious policy change that would have fined users $2,500 for disseminating false information, which the company now admits was made in error, many PayPal PYPL, -4.25% users appear ready to cash out.
Over the weekend, following the discovery of the change to the acceptable use policy (AUP), the phrase “BoycottPayPal” began trending on Twitter.
Additionally, searches for “how to delete PayPal” & “cancel PayPal account” as well as “delete PayPal account” and “how can I delete a PayPal account,” were still popular on Google by October.
According to Google Trends data, global searches for “delete PayPal” increased by 1,450% after the AUP revelation and the company’s subsequent apologies, according to a report from the Financial World news portal.
Along with Kevin Sorbo from “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys,” noticeable figures including PayPal’s former president David Marcus, Tesla’s Elon Musk & Congresswoman Lauren Boebert have joined the outrage against PayPal on Twitter.
It’s important to remember that several other PayPal users defended the corporation. I think PayPal,” one user tweeted. “It was an error.”
What then, was everyone so upset about?
According to Mediaite, the updated PayPal Acceptable Use Policy that was distributed over the weekend and was scheduled to go into effect on November 3rd now includes sanctions against “the sending, posting, or publication of any messages, content, or materials” that “promote misinformation” or “present a risk to user safety or wellbeing.” And a $2,500 fee would be deducted directly from the PayPal accounts of individuals who broke the law.
So some users started looking into how to withdraw their money and personal information and terminate their PayPal accounts in order to secure their money. (Although PayPal owns the digital wallet and peer-to-peer payment service Venmo, there hasn’t been a comparable rise in searches to cancel or delete Venmo.)
However, a PayPal official has subsequently stated that the amended policy was mistakenly released and that the company does not fine users for providing false information.
This occurs during a turbulent period for PayPal.
This year, pressure on technology and fintech companies as well as more specialized difficulties for businesses has caused PayPal shares to lose more than half of their value. In order to adjust expectations to the new economic realities, the corporation lowered their prediction numerous times throughout 2022. Additionally, PayPal executives admitted that they had overestimated how pandemic-era trends would continue once the world reopened.
Due to the new, lower bar, analysts had recently been feeling more positive about PayPal’s prospects. The corporation welcomed a discussion with Elliott Management activists who had invested in it, and PayPal’s leadership team committed to work on improving performance in key areas like checkout in order to focus its efforts.
Of course, PayPal isn’t the only business to get negative user feedback. Facebook’s parent company, Meta Platforms Inc. META, -2.71%, has also generated calls to “delete Facebook” at various points in recent years due to worries about politics and privacy. After Musk first disclosed his potential takeover proposal, some Twitter TWTR, +0.22% users likewise threatened to remove their accounts.
Due to the criticism over the disinformation policy, PayPal’s PYPL, -4.25% stock is down nearly 6% as of midday on Monday.
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