Realtors once again find themselves susceptible to another scam that threatens to con them into paying fines.
The National Association of Realtors warned its members of a new phishing scam that is targeting real estate professionals.
According to the association, “A broker recently received a text message claiming to be from the National Association of Realtors and accusing her of sending ‘racist texts and emails.’ The text message demanded she pay a $1,345 fine.”
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time a scam has happened like this toward real estate agents. Earlier this year, realtors in the state of Florida were targeted and threatened with the suspension of their license as part of an elaborate scam allegedly perpetrated by a fake Realtor group.
Plus, a little over a year ago, the Federal Trade Commission and NAR issued a warning to people interested in buying a home after scammers started to pose as real estate agents, Realtors and title insurance companies to steal consumers’ closing costs.
NAR noted that for anyone who receives a similar scam text, the Federal Bureau of Investigations recommended the following steps:
- Report the incident to the FBI IC3 web site.
- If you suspect that any phone numbers or contact information were obtained due to a breach of a computer system, alert your IT department or consult an IT specialist to scan your systems and make sure that you are free from malware.
- Real estate professionals who clicked on a link the text should promptly follow up with an IT specialist to ensure that their device is free from malware.
- You can follow up with the FBI after filing the IC3 report with your local field office.
