PayPal changes user agreement after outcry

PayPal is changing its user agreement so that customers do not have to consent to receiving robocalls and automatic texts in order to use its service, the company said Monday.

“In sending our customers a notice about upcoming changes to our User Agreement we used language that did not clearly communicate how we intend to contact them,” PayPal’s general counsel Louise Pentland said in a statement. “Unfortunately, this language caused confusion and concern with some of our customers.”

{mosads}It was revealed earlier this month that the payments service would ask users to sign off on receiving robocalls at “any telephone number that you have provided us or that we have otherwise obtained.”

The proposed changes quickly drew the attention of regulators, including at the Federal Communications Commission. The new user agreement was scheduled to go into effect on Wednesday.

“We are concerned that these amendments may violate federal laws governing the use of autodialed, prerecorded, and artificial voice calls, including text messages,” FCC enforcement bureau chief Travis LeBlanc said in a letter to the company.

PayPal said Monday that it would not robocall customers for marketing purposes without their consent, that people could continue to use PayPal without consenting to robocalls and that customers could revoke their consent at any time.

The company says the company uses robocalls to collect debts, aid in fraud protection and update customers with information about their accounts.

The commission adopted new rules to crack down on robocalls this month, over the objections of the commission’s two Republican members.