How to Defend Your Real Estate Business from Phishing Scams

The global pandemic has pushed many real estate businesses to rely less on personal meetings with clients. Many brokers have shifted to providing their services online. Platforms like Lamudi make it easy and convenient to find and interact with clients. Online banking platforms make payments simple. Advancements in 3D graphics and video let you conduct property viewings without leaving your home. The sophistication of property technology or proptech makes managing maintenance requests and bill payments a breeze.

However, the more you integrate the internet into your real estate operations, the more you should be concerned about online security. This is because phishing scams and other cyber attacks are becoming more common.

What is Phishing?

Phishing involves a cybercriminal sending fraudulent communications, primarily emails, to unsuspecting victims with the intent to steal data like credit card details and login information, according to tech giant Cisco. Some phishing messages even lead to links that install malicious software on the victim’s computer, collecting even more sensitive data. 

These communications appear to come from a reliable and trustworthy source because senders often copy the graphics and writing style, posing as legitimate organizations. Common categories of phishing include:

• Clone phishing – This is the most common type, involving scammers creating and sending nearly-identical emails from legit companies to deceive you into giving them sensitive information. 

• Tech support phishing – The tainted email may look like a message from a tech support specialist saying that you have a virus or malicious software on your computer. They’ll ask for access to your device to supposedly “fix” the issue. They end up installing a virus or taking your data instead.

• Spear and whale phishing – The former involves scammers researching specific people or groups in an organization and creating personalized messages and websites, making them easier to trust. Whale phishing works quite the same way, only that it targets members higher up the ranks, like C-suite executives. 

Who Are the Likely Phishing Targets?

A 2021 report by Tessian revealed that employees receive about 14 phishing emails every year. It’s pretty common for everyone, from rank-and-file workers to C-suite executives, to fall victim to these scams. Over 86% of employees have clicked on a phishing email link at least once, according to Cisco’s 2021 threat detection report. It also found that almost all attacks lead to significant data breaches. 

How Can I Protect My Real Estate Business from Phishing? 

Losing company funds by clicking on a fraudulent banking link or having cybercriminals steal your clients’ crucial data are situations that could spell the end of your real estate business. Here are different ways to safeguard your company from phishing scams and what to do if you fall victim to one.

Educate Yourself and Your Employees 

The best way to avoid falling prey to phishing is knowing which messages are fake. One of the simplest and best tips is to check the sender’s email address. 

For example, if your bank’s usual email is “@bank.com,” you should immediately be suspicious if the message you received isn’t from this address. Other telltale signs include extra characters, like “@bank1.com” or different top-level domains like “@bank.net.” You could also hire experts to provide a cybersecurity seminar for you and your workers to identify the latest phishing techniques and how to avoid them. 

Add Another Layer of Security 

Many email suites already have strict security measures. They’re pretty good at filtering out spam and phishing emails. However, cybercriminals are always looking for new ways to bypass these systems. As such, it always helps to have multiple layers of cybersecurity.

Make sure every computer in your organization has reliable antivirus software. This program should have web filters to stop malicious websites from loading when you or your employees click on them. Keeping these programs updated ensures that they can protect your network from phishing threats.

Enforce Strict Password Policies 

Many phishing scams ask for sensitive login information. Others take this information by force by using malware to hack into your company’s computers. For this reason, have a strict password policy. Employees should change their company passcodes every few months or so. It also helps to make those passwords hard to guess, with a mix of numbers and special characters.

Use Modern Authentication Methods 

Another way to minimize the effect of phishing attacks is to add another blanket of authentication on top of logging in with a username and password. Two-factor authentication is an excellent method. This involves using other ways, like an SMS sent to your phone, to verify a sign-in.

Always Backup Your Files 

If you store all your files into just your computer’s hard drive, scammers and hackers can take advantage of this by stealing and deleting your documents. 

One way to avoid this problem is to keep backups of your files, either in separate drives or cloud storage solutions. This way, you can always substitute the files you lost if you ever become a victim of a cyber attack. Do scheduled backups every month or so to make sure. 

Call the Sender, When in Doubt

Most reputable companies won’t ask you for sensitive information, like your login details, credit card PIN, or government ID numbers. Meanwhile, scammers will add a sense of urgency to emails, saying your account may be closing, or your company may be fined if it doesn’t provide details or payment. As such, it’s best to delete or report messages like these as spam. 

If you want to know if the message you just received is legitimate, call the company using a number on their official website or listing. Ask them about the email you just received and verify if the message and email address are legitimate.

Phishing scams are often difficult to spot. Cybercriminals continue to get better at creating fake messages and websites that look exactly like their legitimate counterparts. This is especially harmful to real estate businesses like yours. Since you transact with banks and corporate clients every day, it’ll only be a matter of time before you get targeted. 

As you protect your company from phishing, make property seekers safe as well when doing transactions with you. Trusted real estate platforms like Lamudi uses verified badges to give the buying and renting market peace of mind. Be a Lamudi partner today.

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