Protect Your Assets: Learn About Escrow Fraud
Escrow fraud can happen to anyone, but with the right knowledge and precautions, you can protect yourself and your assets. Learn about the warning signs, common scams, and best practices for preventing escrow fraud. Even a free download to make safe steps.
Escrow Fraud: How it Works
Beware of Escrow Wire Fraud! Scammers impersonate trusted individuals like your agent, escrow company, or supervisor to deceive you. They send urgent emails with a new wire address and instructions for your down payment. Don't fall for it! Verify the email address before taking any action. Protect yourself from becoming a victim of wire fraud and losing your hard-earned money. Stay vigilant and double-check every email you receive regarding financial transactions. Remember, the real victim of these scams is the consumer. Be cautious and ensure your dream home doesn't turn into a nightmare.
The Solution: The Call-Click-Confirm Method
No one solution fits all escrow fraud cases. Each case is unique, and many victims realize they were unprepared. To protect yourself when purchasing a home, it's crucial to familiarize yourself with the Call-Click-Confirm Method.
The Call-Click-Confirm Method Explained
The Call-Click-Confirm (CCC) method is a simple and effective way to verify wire instructions provided by your escrow company or anyone claiming to be your escrow company. Remember, the method involves three steps performed in order: Call, Click, and Confirm.
Questions To Consider:
- Question 1: Does the company have liability insurance? If not, consider finding another provider.
- Question 2: Has the company ever been a victim of this scam in the past? If so, when did it happen and what safeguards are put in place to prevent this from happening again?
- Question 3: What policies do they have in place to support their clients if they were to fall victim to escrow fraud?
Tips For Online Protection From Escrow Fraud
Write down all of the email addresses and phone numbers of the agents that you are working with for your transaction as well as the contact information for your escrow company. If you are contacted by someone that is not on your list, verify their identity with your escrow company and record it. When in doubt, call your escrow company.
Never discuss or reveal any personal financial information via email. Email is NOT a safe place to discuss sensitive topics. If your escrow company requires personal financial information, discuss directly with your agent a plan to safely transfer this information.
If a scammer has hacked the email account and is emailing you as your real estate agent, you’ll have no way of knowing just by looking at the email address. If you’ve received an email regarding your closing process and it seems suspicious or you haven’t yet discussed these topics with your escrow company, proceed with caution. Don’t reply to the email and call your escrow company immediately to verify that the email is valid.
While consumers are disproportionately impacted by escrow fraud, scammers often first infiltrate the systems of escrow and real estate companies. Once they’re able to access the system, disaster could be only a few clicks away.
