[4ad]

PayPal is a disgrace. Years ago they blocked my account and freezed my money until I sent them a copy of my passport, my birth certificate, and a proof of address. But sending them wasn't enough, as this dragged on for months and months with no feedback from them. Eventually (after over a year) they cleared my account, but just a month later it was frozen again, and they asked for the exact same documents yet again. By that time I had made sure I had no money in the account, so I didn't even bother contacting them again.

This was many years ago, and I have almost successfully avoided them since. However, a few months back I had to buy something from Ebay, and I could only pay through PayPal. I now live in a different country, and I have learned that I needed to create a brand new account, you can't change the country of the old account (not that i wanted to use that old account anyway). I made a new account, paid that Ebay guy, and got my merchandise. A month later (after I had already received my merchandise and having not used PayPal after that) I got an e-mail from PayPal asking me yet again for a copy of my passport, my birth certificate, and a proof of address.

Unbelievable. Stay away from PayPal if you can!

[snazz]

This applies to most centralized external services, but especially those that handle money. If your application or business relies 100% on one of these services that could be shut down or have your account suspended or removed, make sure to have a backup plan in place to switch it over to a self hosted option or another offering from another company.

[4ad]

Business? I'm a private individual buying stuff on Ebay. The only time I received money on PayPal was from friends who paid back small loans, like taxi trips or restaurant bills.

[snazz]

That's even crazier then. I guess PayPal is bad for both parties!