You receive an email telling you a charge has been applied to your PayPal account that appears suspicious. What should you do?

Logging into your PayPal account directly by typing the URL into your web browser is the safest and most secure action to take in this situation. This method ensures that you are visiting the legitimate PayPal website and not a potential phishing site designed to steal your login credentials. By checking your account and messages this way, you can verify whether the charge is authentic or part of a scam without exposing yourself to the risks of following links from suspicious emails.

The other options may increase your vulnerability to security threats. Ignoring the email may leave you unaware of any actual compromise, while clicking the link could lead to phishing attempts. Calling customer service immediately might be a feasible option, but without first verifying your account through the official site, you may still be providing sensitive information to an unauthorized source.