Wire Fraud: Red Flags Before Sending Money
Wire transfers are fast and often irreversible, making them a common target for scammers. Knowing the warning signs before sending a wire can help you avoid costly fraud.
Common Wire Fraud Red Flags
1. Real estate scams
Fraudsters may impersonate title companies, attorneys, or real estate agents and send fake wiring instructions.
- Last-minute changes to payment instructions.
- Emails that look legitimate but contain small differences.
- Requests to send funds to a new or unfamiliar account.
2. Business Email Compromise (BEC)
Scammers may hack or impersonate business email accounts to request payments or change payment details.
- Emails requesting urgent payments.
- Changes to vendor or supplier banking information.
- Messages that seem unusual for the sender.
3. Skipping confirmation steps before wiring
Fraud often happens when payment instructions are not verified.
- Receiving wiring instructions only by email.
- Being asked to act quickly without verifying details.
- Not confirming instructions using a trusted phone number.
Always confirm wiring instructions before sending funds.
Important: Once a wire transfer is sent, it can be very difficult to recover the funds. Always verify payment details before sending money.