BE VIGILANT AND AVOID WIRE FRAUD

How to Avoid Being a Victim of Wire Fraud in your Real Estate Transaction:

1. If you receive an email or text message with wiring instructions, do not reply, and do not use those
wire instructions unless and until you have verified them independently using a known phone number
for the party to whom you are wiring money. WIRE INSTRUCTIONS RARELY (IF EVER) CHANGE. Any
“change in wire instructions” should be assumed to be fraudulent.

2. If you receive a phone call with wire instructions, tell the caller you are going to hang up and call the
business (using a known or independently verified phone number) to verify the information.

3. To make sure you have received a legitimate wire request and instructions, call a validated phone
number you have used before to contact the party. DO NOT use a number listed in the email or
message sent to you or call any number that texted you. There could be a fraudster on the other end
of that call ready to continue the deception and trick you into diverting funds into their account.

4. After calling and verifying a trusted number, talk to the person who sent the email or text or who
made the call, and verify that the instructions are correct as written.

5. When sending your wire, ask that your bank confirm the name on the account and verify that
it matches the party to whom you intend to send funds. Ask that they look for any red flags in the
instructions before wiring the funds.

Heritage Title Company’s Wire Policies:

1. Heritage Title Company will ALWAYS send Wire Instructions by encrypted email only or hand the
wire instructions to you in person if you are physically in our office. We will never call, email, or text
message you with an unsolicited request to wire money.

2. Our Wire Instructions DO NOT CHANGE, so please consider any communication attempting to
change them as fraudulent and invalid.

3. We will ALWAYS remind you to call your Closing Team to confirm the Wire Instructions you received
are from us before wiring your funds.

4. Wire your funds as soon as possible to avoid funding delays and advise your Closing Team to be on
the lookout for the funds so we can confirm receipt.

As always, THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING HERITAGE TITLE COMPANY THE OPPORTUNITY TO
COMPLETE YOUR TRANSACTION. WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU!