Use Cash App? You may be entitled to some money
Jan 21, 2025
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Millions of people use Cash App to send or receive money every day, but the popular peer-to-peer payment service is now preparing to pay millions of dollars of its own to customers who fell victim to fraud through the app.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced Jan. 16 that it ordered Cash App's parent company, Block, to pay a total of $175 million and fix its failures on fraud. The CFPB said in a statement that "Block employed weak security protocols for Cash App and put its users at risk. Block directed users -- who had suffered financial losses as a result of fraud -- to ask their bank to attempt to reverse transactions, which Block would subsequently deny."
This isn't the first time Block and Cash App have been told to pay up. Late last year, Better Call 4 told you about a class-action lawsuit against them, alleging negligence with customer data.
Block and Cash App denied any liability but agreed to a $15 million settlement.
Under this order, Cash App must now refund up to $120 million to consumers who were victims of fraud, pay another $55 million into the bureau's victims relief fund, and fix customer service by setting up 24-hour, live-person help, as well as fully investigate disputes and unauthorized transactions -- something many users, including right here in central Ohio, didn't get.
"We get a notification that your phone number has been unlinked from your account," said a couple who spoke anonymously to Better Call 4 a few years ago. "We're checking everything, and then we're frantically trying to figure out what happened, what do we do?"
So, what do you do to find out if you are one of the victims eligible to receive a refund? According to the CFPB – nothing; the bureau said it will ensure that affected Cash App users are compensated. However, you can help the process by submitting your complaints about financial products and services -- like Cash App -- by visiting the CFPB's website.