Watch Shannon’s full Better Call Behnken report here.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — For anyone who uses mobile payment apps like Cash App, Venmo, PayPal and Zelle, your phone is a gateway to your finances.
As the coronavirus pandemic spread, touchless payment options increased in popularity. These apps make it easy to send or receive money faster than ever.
But mobile payments apps have also become a playground for thieves.
“It’s easier to just be like, ‘oh yeah, put my phone number into this app, and you can just send it there,” Frank Wood told 8 On Your Side Consumer Investigator Shannon Behnken.s
Wood is a freelancer in video game marketing. Like many workers in the gig economy, he uses mobile payment apps to get payments from his clients.
For years, Wood had no issues using mobile payment apps. Then one day, he woke up to find his Cash App account drained to nothing.
“The first one was right there, $212, [then] $206, $206, $298.88,” Wood said, showing the transactions on his phone.
Tonight at 6 on News Channel 8, Better Call Behnken explains how the scam works and gets results for Frank Wood.
