Live data from Hacker News

Square Cash

square.com

91–100 of 295 posts

Re: Square Cash

#91

I just scoured the site and saw no limits for receiving through square cash. I can't imagine that this is actually the case; does anyone have any idea what the actual policies are?

$2500 a week, or $250 a week before ID verification, according to WSJ.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142405270230337690...

Re: Square Cash

#92
post #83
post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As lbarrow said, I use a credit card. It used to be that debit cards offered almost no protection. I think they're competitive with credit cards now, but that may only be when you're using it like a credit card. I don't know if this would count towards my fraud protection (which, honestly, I know nothing about). Really, it's because I use my credit card as a firewall account. If my credit card gets compromised (which…

As a non-USAsian, I'm always puzzled by the American's paranoia about their bank account details. In most countries, bank account numbers are effectively public knowledge, and appear at the bottom of invoices and such. The trick is that with this knowledge you can pay money in to an account, but you can't get it out - for that you need authorisation. This makes paying via echeck or direct credit very easy. Am I right…

It may be a historical thing. Whenever you get a receipt from an ATM or a store, your account number if blocked out (so you end up with "XXXXXXXX9585") for privacy reasons. I honestly don't know dangerous exposing my account numbers would be. Consumer protection laws can be hit-or-miss (or, in many cases, just plain missing). It's easier to just be careful.

Re: Square Cash

#93
I love and trust Square, but would be extremely hesitant to trust my debit card anywhere online. Someone going on a charging spree with my credit card doesn't bother me as much as the thought of someone stealing this number and taking the money directly out of my account.

Re: Square Cash

#94
post #40

Seems to work amazingly although I'm a bit concerned about the security. A friend sent me $1. I get an email from square, link to website where I entered my debit #, expiry and postal. It deposited directly to my debit card (I didnt even know you could do that). The deposit already arrived! "Checking Card Adjustment POS Pin (Credit) $1.00" So I sent him $1 back (to: my friend, cc: cash@square.com, subject: $1). And i…

[deleted]

Re: Square Cash

#95
post #51

This is my favorite type of product. Here's why: - Take an existing known medium (in this case email) and makes it way more useful. - They didn't try to build a bunch of new UI for connecting your Facebook so you can find and invite and pay your friends, paying out to your card, etc. - It magically hides the messiness of an enormously complex problem (fraud, different types of debit cards & banks all over the world)…

Looks like an excellent target for phishing attacks!

No kidding. That step 3 is a doozy:

>The recipient will be emailed a link to easily deposit their cash to their bank.

You have to wonder about the wisdom of training people to view such emails as legitimate.

Re: Square Cash

#97
post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just found a major limitation with this thing. It blocks payment from any prepaid Visa/Mastercard - even reloadable cards attached to virtual checking accounts that support ACH (payroll cards, Netspend, etc). That eliminates payments from a huge section of the population. http://prntscr.com/1xm5le Another issue: if you make a mistake on the initial email, and want to send a different amount, you're out of luck. Whe…

Sounds like this is probably more of a security feature. Prepaid cards are harder to track, and would be more suspect to fraud.

You know what's at least as hard to track and prone to fraud? Actual cash. I really dislike the idea that e.g. children shouldn't be able to pay for things over the internet because their identity can't be verified. Let's see some more support for prepaid cards.

Re: Square Cash

#98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just found a major limitation with this thing. It blocks payment from any prepaid Visa/Mastercard - even reloadable cards attached to virtual checking accounts that support ACH (payroll cards, Netspend, etc). That eliminates payments from a huge section of the population. http://prntscr.com/1xm5le Another issue: if you make a mistake on the initial email, and want to send a different amount, you're out of luck. Whe…

It also doesn't work with pure ATM cards that lack a Visa/Mastercard logo. Maybe I am a bit over-paranoid, but I don't like the idea of staring at a zero bank balance while some fraud department promises to fix things up real quick now if I just stay on hold.

If you don't trust your bank to fix fraud, than you need a better bank.

Re: Square Cash

#99
post #94
post #40

Seems to work amazingly although I'm a bit concerned about the security. A friend sent me $1. I get an email from square, link to website where I entered my debit #, expiry and postal. It deposited directly to my debit card (I didnt even know you could do that). The deposit already arrived! "Checking Card Adjustment POS Pin (Credit) $1.00" So I sent him $1 back (to: my friend, cc: cash@square.com, subject: $1). And i…

[deleted]

You mean email account, and not address, right?

Prevention is less important than detection and reversal before withdrawal, which Square and other payment methods companies are pros at.

Re: Square Cash

#100
Brilliant solution, but can anyone tell me how they avoid fraud? I just sent money to a friend, and back. It worked fast and flawlessly, as expected. Supposedly money will be posted to my account in 24-48 hours. All good there.

Now, how can they make sure that the email is genuine and wasn't spoofed? Sure, they can check for white-listed domains and SPF records, but still seems fairly weak process. The FAQ [1] doesn't say much either. Human validation is even worse.

It helps that the send receives an email confirmation with the transfer, but you may not check the email before the money is posted. I guess they're pushing the onus of the proof to the receiver -- after all to receive the money you have to have a bank account and a visa/mc debit card.

Whatever the security mechanism, it's a brilliantly simple solution. If it takes off, it'll quickly replace Dwalla and other micropayments.

[1] https://squareup.com/help/en-us/article/5144-square-cash-sec...

Post reply on HN