Information Center

Information Security

Florida Cyber Crimes in 2023*: 41,061 Incidents Losses: $874.7M

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation Internet Crime Report 2023

Be Cyber Smart!

Check these tips daily to learn how to protect your information, avoid wire fraud and more.

View Cyber Security Tips

8 Cybersecurity Commandments

Be Smart. Be Safe. Be Cyber-Secure!

Document all approved parties’ contact information at the start of a transaction.

Encrypt all emails containing wire instructions or other sensitive data.

Use ONLY trusted, secure email accounts for communications and transactions - NEVER use free or web-based accounts.

Prior to closing, execute an agreement determining the methods of funds transfer with the seller/borrower.

Regard any request for deviation from the established funding agreement as suspicious.

Confirm wiring instructions and receipt of wired funds verbally with documented approved parties.

Slow down. A slow, confirmed closing is always preferred over one that could be compromised.

DON’T WAIT! If you suspect fraud, contact your bank and appropriate authorities.

8 Cybersecurity Commandments (.pdf)

How to Report Cyber Fraud

If you feel that your business or information may be compromised through a cyber attack:

Immediately inform the sender bank – contact the Chief of Security and ask for a recall of the wire.
Immediately inform the receiving bank.
Immediately contact the nearest U.S. Secret Service field office.
- Miami Field Office: (305) 863-5000
- Orlando Field Office: (407) 648-6333
- Jacksonville Field Office: (904) 296-0133
- Tampa Field Office: (813) 228-2636
All suspected cases of cyber fraud can be reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov. If the cyber fraud involved a wire transfer, report to bec.ic3.gov. Note: These websites merely collect data. Do not expect to receive a response from the authorities.

Live Webinars

Cyber Market Outlook – Current Trends in Crime and Insurance - Register Now

Tuesday, October 15 (12:00 PM - 1:00 PM)
The title industry threat of wire fraud is only growing and the fear of being sued for mis-wiring funds is real. In this webinar, Tyler Adams, CEO of CertifID, will discuss who could get sued and why, what the most recent wire fraud cases indicate in terms of...

Safe Disbursement Practices (In Today’s Dangerous Cyber World) - Register Now

Tuesday, October 29 (12:00 PM - 1:00 PM)
The title industry threat of wire fraud is only growing and the fear of being sued for mis-wiring funds is real. In this webinar, Tyler Adams, CEO of CertifID, will discuss who could get sued and why, what the most recent wire fraud cases indicate in terms of...

Sued for Wire Fraud - Register Now

Tuesday, October 08 (12:00 PM - 1:00 PM)
The title industry threat of wire fraud is only growing and the fear of being sued for mis-wiring funds is real. In this webinar, Tyler Adams, CEO of CertifID, will discuss who could get sued and why, what the most recent wire fraud cases indicate in terms of...

On-Demand Webinars

Video – Protecting NPI – Pillar 3 - Purchase Now

This webinar examines the American Land Title Association’s (ALTA) Best Practices Pillar 3: Privacy and Information Security.

Video – Record Retention and Disposal: Put It in Writing - Purchase Now

Learn the parameters of information security and their applicability to practitioners, rules on confidentiality, safeguarding information, and proper disposal.

Video – Spot the Fraud - Purchase Now

Learn helpful tips and practice pointers to ensure legitimacy and authenticity of documents, mortgage payoff statements and forms of photo id.

Video – Spot the Fraud - Non-Member - Purchase Now

Real estate professionals have among their fiduciary duties the ethical obligation to review transaction documents, mortgage payoff statements (estoppel letters) and all forms of photo identification to ensure their legitimacy and authenticity. This one-hour course...

On-Demand Training Library Webinars

Video – The Invisible Seller: Avoiding Vacant Land Fraud - Watch Now

What are the red flags for a fraudulent vacant land sale? Watch a dramatic enactment of an imaginary deal gone very, very wrong and learn what title agents and others can do to avoid this re-emerging scheme that can cost time, money, and heartache. We’ll...

Video – Real Property and Fake Sellers - Watch Now

During this webinar, Julie Lepore, President and Owner of Total FIRPTA, LLC presents Real Property and Fake Sellers. Members will learn how to spot fraudulent sales early on, understand how to properly vet the seller's identity, and establish policies and...

Video – A Whole Lotta BS (Behavioral Science) about Cybersecurity - Watch Now

Let’s be honest: most of us find cybersecurity frustrating. Thinking up long complex passwords, trying to find our phones when we need a code to log in to an account… it’s a pain! And if we believe the scary cybersecurity...

Video – Avoiding Mortgage Payoff Fraud - Watch Now

Real estate practitioners face pronounced dangers due to cybercrime. FBI statistics reveal Florida among those states with the highest rate of cyber victims and dollars lost. Business email compromise (BEC) combined with devilishly clever social engineering feats of...

Video – Cyber Insurance for the Closing Agent: A Roundtable Discussion with Industry Experts - Watch Now

The Fund welcomes Brian Kouwenhoven of Kouwenhoven & Associates, Inc. and Cynthia Zimmerman of Socius Insurance Services for a roundtable discussion on the various insurance products available to law firms and title agencies to protect against business email...

Video – An Insider's Look at Cyber Security Cases - Watch Now

The Fund’s Legal Education Department is pleased to welcome Joseph Swanson, a shareholder of the Tampa office of Carlton Fields, An Insider’s Look at Cyber Security Cases. A large portion of Mr. Swanson’s practice involves litigating cases and...

Video – What?! We’ve Been Phished! – An Online Tabletop Exercise - Watch Now

Join us as we depict a fictional firm’s reaction to learning that it’s fallen victim to an elaborate wire transfer fraud. At crucial points in the firm’s odyssey, we stop and consider the firm’s actions – and inactions - in view of the...

Video – Third-Party Security Vetting for Law Firms - Watch Now

Join Ron Frechette, CEO of GoldSky Security for a FREE webinar, Third-Party Security Vetting for Law Firms. Ron wowed the crowd at Fund Assembly with his Dark Web presentation and is back to introduce Fund members to the third-party security vetting...

Video – Computer Security in the Age of Cyber-Crime - Watch Now

Join Darrell Marsh, The Fund's Computer Security Manager, Information Technology, as he presents Computer Security in the Age of Cyber-Crime. This program focuses on the various types of computer security that Fund members and their information...

Video – A Fund Roundtable: Cyber-Hygiene Tips You Need to Adopt Today - Watch Now

Join the attorneys of The Fund's Legal Education Department as we present A Fund Roundtable: Cyber-Hygiene Tips You Need to Adopt Today. We will share practical tips that law firms and title agencies can adopt to mitigate against cyber-crime and which...

Video – Insuring Against Mortgage Payoff Fraud, Business Email Compromise Fraud & Other Social Engineering Fraud - Watch Now

Real estate settlement providers are now the #1 target of cyber fraudsters and the types of frauds are ever evolving. Mortgage payoff frauds now joins the list of business email compromise and other social engineering frauds affecting closing agents. This webinar...

Video – Protecting Yourself Against Wire Fraud - Watch Now

Day of closing. Updated payoff letter received and your bookkeeper has loaded the wire for you to release. Before you hit the “Send” button, are you absolutely certain that the wiring instruction relied upon is authentic? Are there ways to tell? How...

Video – What Every Real Estate Attorney Needs to Know About Cyber Risk Insurance - Watch Now

Fund Members need to be asking “Will my existing insurance policies cover a loss due to a spoofing incident?” and “What insurance do I need to protect against a catastrophic loss?”. On October 30th at noon, Robert Rosenzweig of RPLU, National...

Video – Escrow & Cyber Security: Protecting You & Your Clients - Watch Now

On 10/23/2018 Matt Rease and Lee Swaffield of RynohLive presented a free Fund Town Hall, Escrow and Cyber Security: Protecting You and Your Clients. RynohLive is a patented, web-based “bridge application” that has helped revolutionize escrow account...

Video – Stopping Cyber Fraud - Watch Now

Electronic communication has become a way of life as has the practice of conducting financial transactions, which are part and parcel of a real estate closing, electronically. Unfortunately, the ease of communication in the cyber age and the widespread use of...

Video – Cyber Liability Insurance - Watch Now

If you've been wondering what cyber liability insurance does and does not cover, how much it costs, and how it can protect your office, this is the presentation for you.

Helpful Links

FAQ’s & Tips

A collection of questions and tips about information security answered.

Information Security FAQ’s &Tips

Information Security FAQ’s (.pdf)

Tips to Avoid Mortgage Payoff Fraud (.pdf)

FLTA's Cyber Security Best Practices (.pdf)

Fraudulent Notary List

List of notaries used in recent fraud claims that are BOGUS and you should not accept. Download List (.pdf)

Questions

Send us your questions and we will get back to you as soon as we can. Help us learn about the issues you are encountering in your practices, which in turn guides how we can best support you.

Email: LegalEd@thefund.com