WIRE FRAUD ADVISORY

Before you wire funds to any party (including our office, a title company, a mortgage broker, or a real estate agent) personally call a verified telephone number (not the telephone number in the email) to confirm before you act! Immediately notify your banking institution, lender, attorney, real estate agent and title company if you are a victim of wire fraud.

Criminals target social media and email accounts to steal information. This is particularly common in real estate transactions because sensitive data, including social security numbers, bank account numbers, and wire instructions are often sent by electronic means.

REAL Law Group, P.C. WILL NEVER send wire instructions or request that you wire us funds. If you receive an email from REAL Law Group with wire instructions or attempting to change the how you make payment at the time of Closing, or if you are feeling unsure about the content or the authenticity of any email you see from REAL Law Group, YOU SHOULD CALL REAL LAW GROUP AT (630) 299-7600 BEFORE TAKING ANY ACTIONS BASED ON THAT EMAIL. We do not want you to be the next victim of wire fraud. Money wired to a fraudulent account is stolen and cannot be recovered. Additionally, there is no insurance for this loss. You may never get the money back.

PROTECT YOURSELF

DO NOT TRUST EMAILS CONTAINING WIRE INSTRUCTIONS

• If you receive an email containing wire transfer instructions, immediately call your attorney and your real estate agent to VERIFY the validity of the instructions.

DO NOT TRUST EMAILS SEEKING PERSONAL/FINANCIAL
INFORMATION

• If you receive an email requesting personal/financial information or asking you to download, click on a link, send, and/or do anything that may seem unusual to you, call your escrow officer immediately prior to acting on the suspicious email to verify the validity of the email.

TRUST YOUR SOURCE OF INFORMATION

• Never direct, accept or allow anyone in the transaction to consent to receiving transfer instructions
  without a direct personal telephone call to the individual allegedly providing the instructions.
• It is imperative that this call be made to a number obtained in person from the individual or through other reliable means, not from a number provided in the email or the wiring instructions.

ONLINE RESOURCES

• There are many online sources that can provide useful information including the following sites:
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • The Internet Crime Complaint Center
  • The National White Collar Crime Center
  • On Guard Online