Protect Yourself Mortgage Fraud
Video transcript
One of the fastest growing cybercrimes is mortgage wire fraud. The best thing that you can do to protect yourself from wire fraud is to become knowledgeable and educate yourself on steps to prevent your risk. To reduce your risk of wire fraud, practice these five rules anytime someone asks you for financial information.
Rule One always call and confirm before wiring any funds, contact the intended recipient, your real estate agent, title, or estrogen by their verified phone number, and confirming the wire information is accurate. Never rely on phone numbers or website addresses provided by an unverified email.
Rule Two encryption. If you have no other option but to send your information via email, make sure to encrypt the email.
Rule Three trust your Instincts if anything seems out of the ordinary, like an unfamiliar financial institution, a last minute change of settlement instructions, or if there are any typos or grammatical errors err on the side of caution, call and verify before executing any wire request.
Rule Four Do not Open if you don't recognize the sender of an email, don't open it. Don't click on any links or attachments, and don’t call any numbers listed in the suspicious email.
Rule Five Stay Vigilant regularly clean out your email account, change usernames and passwords often, and implement up to date firewalls and antivirus technologies. You don't want to fall victim to wire fraud, so it's always best to be prepared. If you believe you or any other party to a real estate transaction has been hacked, then take the following action Change all usernames and passwords associated with your compromised account.
Contact any other clients or parties you believe to be exposed to the hack so they can respond appropriately. Report any fraudulent activity to the FBI via its Internet Crime Complaint Center. We hope these five roles help you in preventing wire fraud in your home purchase or any financial situation in the future. Just a few easy steps can help you stay safe on the path to home ownership.