Buying a property is a massive financial undertaking and, as such, cybercriminals are constantly looking at taking advantage of gaps in people’s concentration and trust in order to gain access to the large sums of money involved in the transaction.

Worryingly, there appears to be an increase in the number of scams and instances of fraud that affects buyers, sellers, estate agents, attorneys and others involved in the sale of a property.

This is according to chief executive officer at eftsure Africa, Ryan Mer (pictured in the header above).

“As property transactions typically involve substantial sums of money, they are a natural target for fraudsters. Tactics range from impersonating estate agents to intercepting emails with instructions on where to make payment for transactions as well as notices of change of banking details instruction,” explains Mer.

What’s more is that Mer says that should a buyer of conveyancer fall for a scam, they may be liable for the damages incurred by the seller. While stolen money can potentially be recovered, the process is time consuming and potentially devastating for individuals and business trying to absorb the financial loss.

As a result, everybody involved in the process needs to exercise extreme vigilance. That means verifying all email addresses involved in the transaction and approaching all payment instructions with caution. Most importantly, if you spot something odd, report it. If an account number looks strange or unusual, reach out to the account holder and confirm the details.

“As a starting point, property professionals should re-evaluate the financial procedures in place for approving payments. Digital solutions are available that help reduce, and in many instances completely eliminate, human error. Where millions of rands are at stake it pays to manage, control and secure the entire payments process,” concludes Mer.