By Lisa A. Tyler
National Escrow Administrator

The phrase “TRUST but verify” became popular in the United States when former President Ronald Reagan used the saying while working on nuclear disarmament with the Soviet Union. As it turns out, it has Russian roots and is considered a rhyme. Maybe the rhyme should be changed to “Don’t Trust and Always Verify!”

The industry continues to experience attacks by criminal syndicates trying to divert wire transfers, steal properties from legitimate property owners and more. This story is a bit different. The perpetrator in this story was an actively licensed business that worked with U.S. Citizens to negotiate settlements and payment plans with the IRS and other creditors on behalf of their clients. Read “TRUST but verify” for all the details. 

Thinking of traveling soon? According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) you should be careful when you plug in your cell phone, laptop and other devices into public charging stations. The FCC and FBI are warning about a cybercrime they refer to as “JUICE jacking.” Be sure to read the article to learn how you can guard against becoming a victim. 

Our Company’s core product is title insurance. We are a title insurance company that provides escrow services to consummate real estate transactions. Our settlement agents are skilled in title clearance and title curative matters. They work closely with title officers who carefully and thoroughly examine the documents that make up the chain of title. 

The Company is not a deed preparation or recording service company. Read “SCAMS change — red flags don’t” to discover how settlement agents can be duped into providing services not related to the issuance of a title insurance product. 

If you have been following along with our series on cash reporting, then you will know the answers to this month’s questions on what the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers “cash.” 

Take the quiz in “WHAT payments must be reported and when?” to test your knowledge of what you have learned from the past seven articles published regarding cash reporting.