Wire Fraud at Closing: The Billion-Dollar Real Estate Scam

A criminal compromises the email account of a title company, real estate agent, or attorney, then waits. Days before closing, they email the buyer with 'updated' wire instructions that route funds to an account they control. The compromised account is the source of authority — the buyer trusts the email because it really did come from their agent's address.

Wired funds clear in minutes. By the time anyone notices, the receiving account is empty and the recipient is unreachable. The FBI's IC3 reports billions in losses tied to business email compromise in real estate every year.

Never trust wire instructions that arrive by email — including from your own agent. Always call the title company at a number you looked up yourself (not from the email signature) and confirm the routing and account numbers verbally before sending. Repeat the verbal confirmation on the day of the wire even if you confirmed earlier in the week.

Call your bank's wire department immediately and request a SWIFT recall — not the regular customer service line. File an IC3 complaint at ic3.gov; the FBI's Recovery Asset Team has clawed back funds in cases reported within 72 hours through the Financial Fraud Kill Chain. Call the recipient bank with the wire reference and ask for a freeze pending fraud investigation. Document every call with names and reference numbers.

Confirm wire instructions verbally on a number you looked up independently. Re-confirm on the morning of the wire. Send a small test wire if your bank allows and call the recipient to verify before sending the balance. Never accept instructions delivered through a 'secure portal' link you received by email — open the portal from your browser, not from the link.