How to check that a pay link is real

A link that asks for your card deserves a second look. That is true of any payment link from any company. Here are the checks that take a minute and catch most problems.

Four checks before you pay

1. Were you expecting it? A real bill follows something you bought or booked. A link out of nowhere is the first warning sign.
2. Do you know the sender? If the message is not from the person or business you dealt with, ask them directly, using a number or address you already had.
3. Does the address match? Look at the start of the web address, before the first single slash. That part is the site you are really on.
4. Do the amount and the name match? The page should show who you are paying and how much, and both should be what you agreed.

What a real Pavo pay link looks like

• It opens on getpavo.app, at an address that starts getpavo.app/pay/ or getpavo.app/pay.php?id=.
• It shows the business being paid and the amount.
• The card step can then open on Stripe’s own page, checkout.stripe.com.

What Pavo never asks for

• Your password or a sign-in code, by email, text or phone.
• A fee before you can receive money.

If a message does either, it is not from Pavo.

A real link is not the whole answer

This part matters. A real link proves the link is real. It does not prove the seller is honest. Anyone who sells something can make a pay link. So the first two checks, were you expecting it and do you know the sender, matter more than the address.

When not to pay

• You are being rushed: “pay in the next ten minutes”.
• You are asked to pay to release a prize, a parcel or a refund.
• The amount or the name is not what you agreed.
• Someone you have not met asks you to pay on their behalf.

If you are not sure

Do not pay yet. Pavo’s pay link page explains how to check a link and how to ask Pavo to look at one. If you already paid and something is wrong, contact your card issuer as well. They can dispute a card payment.

If you are the seller

Make it easy for your customers. Tell them a link is coming, put what it is for in the note, and send it from the number or address they already know. See how to send a pay link.

If you think you paid a fake

1. Call your card issuer. Use the number on the back of the card. Tell them what happened and ask about disputing the payment.
2. Keep the evidence. Save the message, the link and any screenshots.
3. Stop replying. Do not send more money to “fix” or “release” anything.
4. Tell the company whose name was used. For a link that claimed to be Pavo, use the pay link page.

Acting the same day matters. Card disputes are easier while the payment is recent.