If something goes wrong with a payment app like Venmo or PayPal, your instinct may be to search online for help. But scammers buy ads and post fake numbers so their listing shows up first. Call that number, and a scammer picks up, pretending to be real support.
Venmo, PayPal, and other payment apps all say the same thing: get help through the app itself, using its own Support or Get Help button, not a number you found by searching. If you search for a company's phone number instead, you may land on a scammer.
A real refund never requires you to send money first. If anyone says they will refund you only after you pay a fee, send a gift card, or let them into your bank account, stop. That is the scam.
When you need help with a payment app, bank, or any account, open the app or website yourself and use its own Help section. Do not trust a phone number from a search result, a text message, or a pop-up ad.
Rule to remember: get help only inside the real app or on the real website you already use, never through a number or link someone sent you.