Fraudsters attacking the conveyancing sector are making national headlines at an alarming rate. Maud Rousseau of SearchFlow takes a look at the actions homebuyers can take to best protect themselves.
Criminals are deploying ever more sophisticated methods to intercept large sums of money transacted during a house purchase and being a victim of a scam can have a devastating impact, with homebuyers losing their life savings and often unable to recover the funds.
There have been great advancements in cyber security technology and services to help protect homebuyers. However, often the weakest link in cybersecurity is the person using the PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone.
Bogus Law Firm – Prior to instructing a law firm, always check the law firm is regulated and registered. Homebuyers and sellers can use services such as the Law Society’s Find a Solicitor to check if they are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority or accredited by the Law Society.
It is best practice if your solicitor is also checking the validity of a law firm and its bank account details before any funds are transferred. This can be done via Lender Exchange’s Law Firm Search, which works on behalf of lenders to verify the details of law firms on their panels and offers access to the largest set of verified conveyancing firms in England and Wales.
Fake seller identity – When instructing your solicitor, ask how they verify the identity of individuals involved in a property transaction. Your solicitor should be carrying out all the necessary checks to verify your identity and the sellers . Electronic AML checks are available at a low cost to ensure the person is who they say there are.
Malware dangers – You and your solicitor should also be on guard against the dangers of malware. Convincing-looking spoof emails with innocuous-looking attachments, which when opened, can infect computers with malware.
Fraudsters can then not only gain access to individuals’ computers, but also those of estate agents, law firms and their clients. Any emails they intercept can easily be data-mined, using technology which allows key word searches on large volumes of information in order to detect personal or sensitive data, including banking and financial transaction details and their timing.
Update your browser – Modern browser software adds protection against fake websites. The program you use to look at websites is called a web browser. Modern browsers warn you if you visit fake websites and it is harder for viruses to infect them.
Install and keep updated anti-virus software – This applies to any device that connects to your network, whether it’s a mobile phone, tablet or laptop. Anti-virus software protects you, your privacy and your money. Viruses can steal personal information, take over your PC, and use your computer to attack other people’s computers.
Email correspondence is not secure and cases of email spoofing, which is the creation of email messages with often very realistic forged sender address, has resulted in buyers and solicitors unwittingly sending cash to the wrong account. Always check the origin of an email. Does the email domain address match the website address exactly, and be wary of different extensions (.net or .uk.com instead of co.uk).
Don’t share or accept private information via emails – There are many methods to help better protect you from cyber criminals and fraudsters, but arguably the most important advice is to be mindful that email correspondence is not secure. Never accept or give account details by email correspondence. Contact the company and talk to your solicitor directly to confirm account details.
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