Google searches for phrases such as “delete Paypal” were soaring as much as 1,300% days after a report from The Daily Wire highlighted the company’s attempt to penalize users $2,500 for spreading “misinformation” through the platform.
PayPal, which has deplatformed multiple entities and commentators for their political and social views, had unveiled an upcoming change to its acceptable use policy that would have banned the promotion of “misinformation,” as well as “hate, violence, racial or other forms of intolerance that is discriminatory.” Within one day of The Daily Wire breaking news of the policy change, PayPal claimed that the new guidelines were published “in error” and apologized “for the confusion this has caused.”
PayPal trended on Twitter over the weekend as thousands of customers expressed their disdain for the policy on social media and announced that they intended to cancel their accounts. Google searches for phrases such as “how to cancel PayPal” were still trending as of Monday morning, according to an analysis of Google Trends data from MarketWatch. The phrase “delete PayPal” surged 1,392% after the acceptable use policy announcement and retraction.
Customers reacted strongly as PayPal said users found in violation of the new policy could be liable for “damages,” including the removal of $2,500 “debited directly from your PayPal account” per offense, with cases deliberated at the “sole discretion” of the company. Before posting its initial story, The Daily Wire contacted PayPal for definitions of the added terms but received no reply.
