Mortgage Closing Wire Fraud Scam

Overview

Scammers hack real estate professionals' email accounts to monitor upcoming home closings, then send homebuyers spoofed last-minute wiring instructions that divert their down payment and closing funds into fraudulent accounts.

How It Works

According to the CFPB, scammers are increasingly targeting real estate professionals, seeking to compromise their email in order to monitor email correspondences with clients and identify upcoming real estate transactions. During the closing process, scammers send spoofed emails to homebuyers, posing as the real estate agent, settlement agent, legal representative, or another trusted individual, with false instructions for wiring closing funds, aiming to divert the homebuyer's closing costs and down payment into a fraudulent account.

Red Flags

• Receiving an email with last-minute changes to wiring instructions right before your closing date
• A real estate agent, settlement agent, or legal representative asks you to send closing funds via a new or different account than previously discussed
• Being asked to confirm closing instructions, including account name and number, by email instead of in person or by a previously agreed phone number

Real Examples

• CFPB describes scammers compromising real estate professionals' email accounts to monitor correspondence and identify upcoming transactions, then sending spoofed emails posing as the real estate agent, settlement agent, or legal representative to send false instructions for wiring closing funds

Where It Spreads

How to Protect Yourself

• Identify two trusted individuals (your real estate and settlement agents) ahead of closing and agree on a phone number or code phrase to confirm any payment instructions, rather than trusting email alone
• Call the title company or real estate agent using a phone number you previously agreed to \u2014 never a number or link from an email \u2014 before wiring any funds
• Avoid clicking on any links or downloading attachments without first confirming with your trusted representatives, and do not email financial information since email is never a secure way to send it
• If you've already wired funds and suspect fraud, immediately contact your bank or wire-transfer company to request a wire recall and file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3.gov)

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