Guard Yourself Against Cyberfraud

Don't Let Scam Artists Steal Your Money!

What You Need to Know

Attempts to misdirect money are increasingly common in real estate transactions. The most frequent involves a fraudster posing as a true party to your transaction (e.g., an employee of ALCOVA or the closing agent/attorney, real estate company, etc.) and instructing you to send money to an illegitimate account. This is often coupled with pressure to act quickly.

What It Can Look Like

Con artists often use an email designed to appear authentic by spoofing the true party's email address and / or email signature. There are endless ways to spoof an email or web address.

Here are just a few ways semployee@anycompany.com could be impersonated:

• semployee@anycornpany.com {letter m replaced by letters r & n}

• sampleemployee@anycompany.com {first initial replaced by whole name}

• semployee@anycompany.com {letter o replaced by number 0}

• semployee@anycomp.com. {company name abbreviated}

What You Should Do

If you get an email with new or changed instructions for the way you are supposed to provide any funds for your transaction:

× DO NOT SEND THE MONEY It is most likely a scam.

→ CALL TO VERIFY THE INSTRUCTIONS Do not rely on contact data in the email. Only use a number from a reliable source such as a business card, sales contract, or online search.

Early Funds (e.g., those used for due diligence or down payment): Call your real estate agent or closing agent / attorney. ALCOVA employees cannot confirm the directions for these funds.
Credit Reports / Appraisal Fees: Call ALCOVA. You can search this site for the phone number of any of our loan officers.
Closing Funds: Call your closing agent / attorney. ALCOVA employees cannot confirm the instructions for this money.

Use the same caution with any suspicious correspondence you receive. If something seems off, find verified contact information for the alleged sender and ask questions before replying, clicking a link, wiring money, etc.