Clients (not ours) thought the email was from their conveyancer - then $250k vanished...
Property scams are now hitting everyday Queenslanders and costing them everything. Don't trust any bank details by email - here's what you need to know to stay safe.
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Hi everybody - George Sourris, Empire Legal.
Today's topic: The QLD property settlement scam no one thinks will happen to them!
The Queensland property settlement scam that no one thinks will happen to them. If you've been anywhere near a property transaction in Queensland in the last 18 months, you'll know that cyber fraud is no longer a theoretical risk. It's here, it's active, and Queensland is unfortunately a hotspot.
The property industry is particularly exposed. Conveyancers, real estate agents, buyers, sellers - everybody involved in the transfer of large sums of money is now a target. This isn't about someone hacking your laptop. The modern scam is more sophisticated, more strategic, and always looks legitimate, until it's too late.
Let's look at what's happening in Queensland right now and what you can do to protect yourself.
A couple of recent cases.
The Noosa City Council publicly stated last month approximately $2.3 million was scammed, redirected by criminals imitating legitimate invoicing processes. Only $400k has been recovered, leaving the council with $1.9 million gone.
Also, a Gold Coast couple lost approximately $250,000 intended as a deposit, after receiving a fake email that looked like it came from their conveyancer.
This is real people, real deals, life savings lost. These aren't fringe incidents, guys. They're happening to ordinary people, businesses, and professionals who followed what appeared to be normal instructions.
Why Queensland Property is being targeted.
There are a few very clear reasons. Number one, higher value transfers settlements routinely involving hundreds of thousands of dollars. Number two, time pressures. When settlement is due, people act quickly. Three, email heavy communication. Almost all trust account instructions are emailed. And number four, multiple parties. More parties = more communication paths to intercept. Cyber criminals don't need your password, they only need to insert themself at exactly the right moment.
Queensland leads the country in these scams.
The Australian Cybersecurity Center reports Business Email Compromise (BEC) is one of the highest loss cyber crimes in Australia. This is also known as spearfishing. The average loss per successful BEC incident nationwide is around $55,000. Queensland records the highest number of confirmed incidents nationally in the most recent reporting period.
Translation - if you're buying, selling, or working in property in Queensland, this is not background noise. This is a risk in your environment that you need to be aware of.
But how do the scams actually work?
The pattern is consistent. Firstly, criminals compromise or imitate an email account from an agent, conveyancer or client.
Then they watch the matter unfold, sometimes for weeks. Next, when payment is due, they send fake trust account banking details. Following that, the money is transferred to accounts controlled by the criminals, and it's usually then moved offshore and is unrecoverable.
These emails look perfect - correct signatures, tone, grammar, and timing. Because scammers monitor real emails, their messages feel familiar.
How does Empire Legal protect their clients?
Our systems are designed to break the scams playbook. We never change trust account details by email, ever. Trust account details are confirmed verbally every time using our published office landline number, not the one that you see in an email.
We engage third party IT security to monitor all of our computers and our emails, and we have two factor authentication on all of our software, so the bad guys can't get in. We do not act on "urgent" or "new" bank details, instruction via email. Instead, we get on the phone, on the verified line to make sure it's the client and not the scammer.
One phone call, which is old school, can prevent a six figure loss.
What to do before transferring funds?
Whether depositing or settling, call your conveyancer on their known phone number. Confirm the BSB and account number verbally. Don't rely solely on email instructions.
If you receive an email saying bank details have changed, stop immediately. This is almost always a scam.
The bottom line - cyber criminals aren't targeting random individuals. They're deliberately targeting property settlements because that's where the money moves. The safest position is simple. Don't trust bank details received via email.
Verify everything over the phone, no exceptions. If something feels slightly off during your transaction, call us. Your settlement depends on it.
That's all for this week!
Any questions, get in touch. Give us a like, give us a follow. Or if you have a client that needs help, send them our way. Thanks again, guys. Have a great day.
What you want when you're picking a provider to work with is a trusted choice. If you're thinking about engaging someone else, just Google them. Read their reviews. That'll be the true test, what the public says about that company. All the information you need to get started is on our website. Check out our Instagram and if we look like a good fit for your brand, all you need to do is refer us to your clients and we'll take care of the rest.
Guys, that's it for this week. Hope you learned a thing or two. Please feel free to get in touch if you've got any questions. Empire Legal - happy to help. Queensland's trusted choice for conveyancing. Over 2,800 Google reviews with a five star average. There's not many firms out there that have that five star average. With that many reviews, guys, and not to mention over 12,000 deals settled. Thanks guys. We'll see you next week.
Finally, if you haven't heard, we've launched our podcast. It's called Raising the Bar, where we story tell excellence in Queensland property. Here is the link to listen. If you prefer to watch, here is the YouTube link.
Also, stay up to date with our miniseries on Seller's Disclosure.
Thanks guys. We'll see you next week!
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Thanks for reading everybody. See you on the next one.
Ladies and gentlemen, please keep in mind that all advice is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice. This is authorised by George Sourris, Empire Legal, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
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Note: all information is general in nature and as each matter is unique please contact our office for tailored advices: the above does not constitute legal advice.