On March 30, 2015 Elouise Jahnke successfully closed a sale transaction. The sellers provided her with written instructions to cut a check for their proceeds and deliver it to their real estate agent. They intended on using the proceeds towards the closing costs and down payment for another property they were purchasing at another title company. Elouise followed their instructions, cut them a check and had it delivered to their real estate agent's office.

The very next day Elouise received emails purportedly from their real estate agent's office asking her to wire the proceeds instead. The instructions did not come from the sellers, nor did they come from the real estate agent she worked with throughout the transaction. Instead they were from an assistant of the real estate agent. The assistant, however, had not worked on this transaction until now. Here are the emails:

From: Real Estate Agent
Hello Elouise! Has the Jones been funded?

Elouise Jahnke wrote:
Yes — didn't you get your checks?

From: Real Estate Agent
They are telling me about having problem with there account, just want to be sure. Thanks

Elouise Jahnke wrote:
Need a little more information so I know how to help! Thanks

From: Real Estate Agent
They have issue with bank acct. Can they receive funds with another acct?

From: Real Estate Agent
They want the funds wired?

Elouise Jahnke wrote:
Ok, so I thought they were taking our check to ABC Title for the closing. Is ABC refusing to honor our check? The EO was OK with that last week.

From: Real Estate Agent
They receive the checks but they want the payments stop on the checks and wire to proceed.

Elouise Jahnke wrote:
That check has to be returned to us. We will wire out tomorrow.

From: Real Estate Agent
Ok, But the Jones wont be able bring the check down tomorrow morning because of work schedule,hey will like to mail the check back to you I hope that os ok with you. I will forward the account they are using to receive the funds in the AM.
Have a good night. Thanks

From: Real Estate Agent
Good morning Elouise!
Kindly forward the address to mail the check to, below is the info for the proceed.
BANK NAME: ABC Bank
ACCT NAME: JOHN DOE
ACCT NUMBER: xxxxxxxxxx
ROUTING NUMBER: yyyyyyyyyy
Pls do get back to as soon as you receive this message. Sorry for the inconvenience Thanks

Elouise Jahnke wrote:
Please call me. I do not know what you are wanting.

From: Real Estate Agent
Am so sorry am in a middle of meeting right now which am not allowed to call, i can only email you. What i meant was that, the seller of 123 Main street, which is (Mr. and Mrs. Jones) want check voided or put a stop pay because of the problem they are having with bank acct, and want the fund proceeds to the info iI send to you few mins ago.
Am very sorry for the inconvenience. Thanks

Upon receipt of this email Elouise picked up the phone, and called the seller and the real estate agent directly to find out exactly how she could help. Neither of them knew what she was talking about. Next she called the assistant to the real estate agent who also knew nothing about the emails.

Turns out the email account was completely made up. The assistant confirmed he did not have an email address from the account Elouise was receiving these emails from. She stopped replying to the emails, but the impersonator sent two more emails.

From: Real Estate Agent
Pls do send the address you want the check to be mail to.i wait to hear back from you.

From: Real Estate Agent
Am sorry to bother you this much, Are you not the closer of this transaction? Attached is the HUD.

It did not stop there! The impersonator called her to find out when the funds would be sent. The area code on caller ID indicated he was calling from Las Vegas. Elouise told him she knew he was an imposter and not to call or contact her any further. How bold!

Elouise was not duped. She recognized all the signs such as the bad grammar and the fact the account name on the wire instructions did not match her sellers. But just when she was convinced it was a hoax, the impersonator sent her a copy of the seller's HUD–1 from her closing. Creepy! It was then she picked up the phone and called her customers. Verbally confirming the information from a good known phone number is always the very best defense.

The proceeds from the sale were almost $58,000. Had Elouise acted on the email instructions her operation would be facing a loss for those funds. Instead, she recognized the signs and called the customers. For her efforts she has been rewarded with $1,500 as well as a letter of recognition from the Company.