By Vanessa Blum, From The Recorder

SAN FRANCISCO — Amid an uptick in Telephone Consumer Protection Act suits against technology companies, PayPal Inc. has been hit by a complaint from an aggrieved customer who says the company exploited his fear of identity theft to enroll him in an illegal telemarketing campaign.

The suit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, is backed by Costa Mesa’s Kazerouni Law Group, one of the plaintiffs firms that’s been most active in the area.

Name plaintiff Scott Wiederhold alleges that he received an alarming email from PayPal in February that asked for his help resolving an issue with his account and advised that account security is “a top priority.” Concerned that his account had been compromised, Wiederhold said that he logged into PayPal’s website as instructed and was prompted to select a method to confirm his identity. He chose to receive a text message, believing it would be the most expeditious response, according to the complaint.

Wiederhold never received additional information about any unusual account activity, the suit claims. However, he allegedly received at least two prerecorded messages on his cellphone marketing a credit card offer through PayPal. The suit accuses PayPal of creating “the false impression that plaintiff was urgently required to provide” his contact information and then using it to place automated calls without consent.

Matthew Loker, an attorney with the Kazerouni Law Group, seeks to represent a class of individuals who received automated text messages or prerecorded phone calls from PayPal without consent dating back to 2012. Successful claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act carry a minimum statutory penalty of $500 per violation.

Loker said it’s too early to tell how many consumers have been impacted, but added, “When it happens to one person, you expect it to happen across the board.”

PayPal did not respond to an email message.

IMAGE: PayPal HQ Campus Outdoor.SOURCE: PayPal

Read more: http://www.therecorder.com/id=1202755385746/PayPal-Sued-Over-Telemarketing-Calls#ixzz46OaRjIYC