I'm opening up a Paypal account and I have all but one question. As someone who absolutely hates his given name, I don't want it to be shown to others, especially when I'm not friends with them.
Will they be able to see my real name when they're sending money to me, or is there a setting to hide it...?
Unfortunately not, for personal accts. PayPal requires that users use real name. When you send money, recipients will see your real name, email address and shipping address where applicable. Perhaps open a business account on an individual capacity, using an alias for business name but keep account owner name your real name. The business name is shown on payments.
