Beware of Phishing Scams

Real Estate is one of the top industries targeting by phishing scams. In short, a phishing Scam is one where the criminal hacks an email account, impersonates someone else and steals money, personal information, or identities.

One of the most common scams involves redirecting wired funds before closing on a transaction.

This scam damages all parties involved: buyer, seller, agents, lenders, attorneys, and more. While there are no guaranteed solutions, here are some tips for prevention and damage control:

Prevention:

Avoid sending sensitive information via email

Verify the intended wire recipients and instructions immediately prior to authorizing/sending funds

Beware of communication that is exclusively via email

Clean out your email account on a regular basis

Implement hard to guess passwords

Set a code phrase for telephone contact concerning sensitive information

Damage Control: (If you believe you've been scammed)

Contact the financial institution and request a recall of the funds

Report fraud to the FBI: www.ic3.gov

Change usernames and passwords immediately

Contact any other potentially affected parties.