... (to be signed) devoted to avoiding wire fraud. (Finally!) WIRE FRAUD ALERT Here's the opening sentence: <<… buyers and sellers are targets for wire fraud and many have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because they simply relied on the wire instructions received via email without further verification…>> Note the blame being place squarely on ignorant buyers/sellers who don't have the good sense to know their e-mail is hacked. "Simply relied"? "Without further verification"? Really? Who's actually going to call the title company and ask "is this really from you? Am I being ripped off?" Maybe (hopefully) these days they will ... but back in the day, who wouldn't rely on e-mailed wire instructions? They're in the middle of one of the few buying/selling transactions in their lives. Then, here come wiring instructions. What a coincidence! What buyer would have known the crooks had accessed their e-mail, monitoring it for real estate transactions, somehow determined the likely date of closing and then posed as the escrow officer with "new" wiring/routing numbers. I place the blame for this fraud proliferation on negligence from TCs that wanted the convenience of wiring without having to worry about bounced personal checks or banks holding on to them for verification or even cashier's checks, which proved to be problematic as well. But it seems Fidelity blames it on their stupid clients.
And if that's not bad enough, now we NSAs are being targeted. Just got this from Amrock:
<<Hello Partner,
Several Signing Agents have recently received suspicious calls from fraudsters claiming to be from Amrock. In some cases, the caller requested information about a closing. In another, the caller asked the Signing Agent to add an app to their phone. (Luckily, the signing agents confirmed with Amrock that these communications were not legitimate before complying with the request.)
These types of calls are associated with a type of fraud known as “vishing,” where people pose as trusted sources to obtain sensitive information, then use that information to defraud individuals or institutions.
How can you avoid vishing scams? Follow these security guidelines:
• Phone numbers can be (and often are) “spoofed,” meaning someone can make it look like the call is coming from a real Amrock phone number. Don’t assume that the number on your caller ID belongs to a trusted source.
• Anyone from Amrock who reaches out to you will introduce themselves by their first and last names and will refer to Amrock by name in their script.
• Ask the caller to verify your Partner ID before providing them with any information.
• If at any time you question the legitimacy of the call, hang up and call Partner Management to confirm the request.
• Never mail documents to an address that’s different than the one on the closing package.
If you suspect you have been or are being vished, contact Partner Management immediately. We appreciate your diligence and your efforts in keeping transactions secure.
Thank you,
Partner Management
What I find humorous about this e-mail, is that the fraudsters now know exactly what to say and do in their call.
What I don't find humorous is how fraudsters have focused on real estate as their new money pot. Whatever happened to the mafia, drugs, sex trafficking, knee-capping? Not enough money in it, apparently, and this digital stuff is so much more rewarding!
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