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Tell HN: Be mindful what you put in your Venmo descriptions

by calrueb on 10/31/22, 6:12 PM with 3 comments

This morning I woke up to an email from Venmo titled "Your Venmo Account". At first I figured I was being phished, but I opened it up, and found the following

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[...]

On October 31, 2022, you sent a payment for the amount of $48.59 for, "Cuban date." We're trying to understand:

   * your reference to "Cuban."
 
   * purpose of this payment, including a complete and detailed explanation of what you intended to pay for and the establishment/location if applicable.
To submit your documentation, please use Venmo's Secure web form: [...]

We thank you for your attention to this matter and apologize for any inconvenience. Your payment has been held until the issue is resolved, so we're unable to cancel it. This hold cannot be removed until Venmo receives the requested information that will enable us to ensure our compliance with our regulatory obligations.

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This is a real, private transaction I sent my girlfriend to split a dinner we had last week. We went to a Cuban restaurant in San Francisco.

I have been a Venmo user for at least 6 years. I have done 100s of transactions, including dozens with my girlfriend. I am annoyed that I now have to go through an opaque, bureaucratic process to get my transaction unlocked. If I knew my Venmo transaction descriptions could trigger fraud checks I would have simply said "date night". This experience has left a bad taste in my mouth, and I will be considering alternatives. At the minimum, I will be leaving my Venmo descriptions blank or vague!

  • by pwg on 10/31/22, 6:26 PM

    You need to educate yourself about FinCEN (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_Crimes_Enforcement_N...). You'll end up with the same issue with alternatives, as no business which handles payments is immune to having to abide by the FinCEN rules.

    And because Cuba is likely still a country listed as sanctioned, the mention of "Cuban" in the description likely triggered a higher level check to verify you were not trying to transfer money to Cuba via Venmo (which would run afoul of the sanctions).

  • by salawat on 10/31/22, 9:24 PM

    Welcome to OFAC compliance. In case you did not know, it is the finance sector's job to make sure you do not transact with any embargoed or sanctioned entities or groups the United States decides shouldn't be given entrance to the U.S. financial system. This responsibility is part of doing business.

    You will not find a licensed payment processor that will not do this type of surveillance/due diligence, as they are strictly liable for any violations. If this creeps you out, join the club.

  • by imissfirefox on 10/31/22, 9:14 PM

    You refer to your transaction as private and yet you use Venmo… I don’t think “private” means what you think it means.