PayPal the leader of online payment methods has announced it will begin to accept payments via text messages from mobile phones and devices.

The service will be available for customers in the United States and Canada. The service allows for peer-to-peer money transfers with friends, text to buy products from online retailers, and even donate to charities.

 To use PayPal mobile, you will need to register your mobile phone number with your excisting paypal account. PayPal will send you a Personal Identification Number (PIN) to protect your mobile payments. As an additional security measure you will receive a verification call from PayPal asking you to confirm the transfer.

Companies signed up for the text-to-buy service include; Air Jordan Bravo, MTV, L’Oreal and Universal. Charities signed-up for Text to Give include Amnesty International, Starlight Starbright, Unicef and The Magic Johnson Foundation.