Paypal gmail address dot fraud issue

[garybake]

Somebody has setup and activated an account using my email address. My email is [Removed]

Gmail lets you receive emails with a dot anywhere in the name, and they have setup an account with [Removed]

My email hasn't been compromised and nobody else has access (I work in IT). Yet paypal has let somebody setup up an account and somehow they have verified themselves. 

Paypal have wiped there hands of the issue because 'its not my account' or 'phone gmail'.

Checking google or this message board shows tons of people having this issue. The issue is with paypal and nothing seems to be being done to resolve it.

I raised a case days ago but the account is still active. My fear is paypal may close this account at some point and fail to resolve the issue of lax security checks with the dot/gmail issue.

[PayPal_Ayesha]

Hello @garybake,

Welcome to the community forum and thanks for posting! 

I'm sorry to hear someone is using your email address. It sounds like an account may have been set up in error, possibly due to a typing error in the email which is not uncommon. Please send an email address that you're referring to, so that our concerned team can help you recover your email address. Here's the help center article to know more information.

I hope this helps,

Ayesha

[garybake]

No! I have sent emails and made 3 calls to your customer services.

I'm continually being fobbed off. The account is still active that I can receive emails for with my name on it!

There is nowhere to flag fraudulent accounts, only fraudulent transactions. Most of the help pages linked from google when I search for 'paypal identity theft fraud' no longer work.

There are pages of people having the same problem as me, with fraudsters adding a dot to legitimate gmail address'.

Paypals approach to this problem is a joke.