Wire Fraud

Buying a home is an exciting time of your life, though there are some pitfalls to avoid. The American Land Title Association want buyers and sellers to be aware of criminals who are involved with wire fraud schemes to steal money meant for home purchases, or the proceeds of a home sale. The process usually begins with the criminals communicating by email, website forms, or phone calls to steal your email login information. They check to see if you are involved with the purchase or sale of a home. Once they have that information, they will send wire transfer forms disquised as the company you normally do business with. If you respond and send the money, there is no getting it back.

Here are four tips to protect against wire fraud:

1. Call, do not email. Confirm all wiring instructions before following through, and do not use the number listed on the form itself.
2. Be suspicious. Title companies do not normally change wiring instructions during a transaction.
3. Confirm everything. Ask the bank to confirm the account and the name before sending a wire transfer.
4. Verify immediately. Call the title company or real estate agent and make sure they received the transfer.

If you have been targeted by a scam you should immediately call your bank and ask them to issue a recall notice for the wire transfer. Report the client to ic3.gov. And notify the regional FBI and local police department.