When buying or selling property in Australia, many people engage a lawyer to help — for example, to review the contract, handle the title transfer, and so on. However, criminals often exploit this opportunity, stealing client information and sending scam emails to lure clients into transferring funds. If you’re not careful when buying a property, falling into such a trap can lead to devastating losses. Today’s story is about a couple who made exactly this mistake. Read on to avoid the same pitfall!

Ms Z and Mr W, a married couple, had been working hard in Australia and were finally about to buy their own property — a home that would consume most of their savings. The couple spent a long time choosing an area, inspecting properties, and preparing all the necessary paperwork. Eventually, everything was almost ready; all that remained was the title transfer process.

One day, the couple received an email. The email appeared to be from the lawyer they had engaged, and it was marked as urgent. The email read as follows:

Ms Z and Mr W, our property purchase process has now reached the title transfer stage. In order to complete the transfer as quickly as possible, please transfer the funds to the account below to finalise the title transfer.

The email not only contained Ms Z and Mr W’s correct names, company name, and property contract, but also the lawyer’s signature and the name of the law firm. As a result, Ms Z and Mr W believed the email was highly credible. Eager to secure their new home and complete the title transfer smoothly, they did not hesitate to transfer AUD 1.5 million to the account provided in the email.

Only afterwards did the couple call the lawyer to follow up — only to discover that the lawyer had never sent any such email, and the bank account was wrong.

Ms Z and Mr W were struck as if by a bolt from the blue. They immediately contacted the bank, but the bank advised that the couple had likely been scammed by criminals, and that the AUD 1.5 million transfer might not be fully recoverable.

The couple then reported the matter to the police for assistance. Based on the analysis, it appeared that the criminals had used special methods to steal the couple’s property purchase details, law firm information, and other data, intercepted the lawyer’s genuine email (which did not request a transfer), altered the contents of the email, and replaced the normal content with a demand to transfer AUD 1.5 million — the destination account naturally belonging to the criminals. After considerable effort and persistent pursuit by all parties, the couple recovered only a small portion of the funds, ultimately suffering a major financial loss.

Please take note!

This incident should serve as a wake-up call for everyone. Whether you are planning to buy a property in the future or are currently in the middle of a property transaction, please stay vigilant! After all, buying a home is a major decision involving substantial sums of money — often the savings of many years.

If you receive a similar email that appears to be from your lawyer, asking you to transfer funds to a particular account or to provide important personal information, we recommend you first contact the lawyer personally by phone or in person to verify whether the email is genuine and was actually sent by them. Never make a large transfer without first verifying the request — otherwise, if you do fall victim to a scam, the regret will come too late.

Tips to Guard Against Scams

When buying or selling property in Australia, please also keep the following in mind:

1. Confirm that the real estate agent’s credentials are genuine, legal, and valid.

2. Verify the property details thoroughly, including the seller’s and agent’s information, and ensure the actual condition of the property matches the contract description.

3. When signing a purchase contract, review the contract terms carefully — pay attention to the finance clause, building inspection clause, FIRB (foreign buyer) approval clause, cooling-off period, and so on. For more details see: Signed the purchase contract, only to find out it’s a stigmatised property. What to do if you’ve been deceived or misled?

4. Confirm the payment account to avoid scams or unnecessary disputes in the transaction.

5. Stay alert to scams at all times, especially when communicating by phone or email.

6. When browsing websites for information, viewing property listings, or entering payment pages, do not casually open suspicious pop-ups, images, text boxes, or emails.

Finally

In summary, when buying, selling, or transferring property, the key is to be extremely cautious — consider things thoroughly, review all details carefully, and maintain ongoing communication with your lawyer. If you encounter any uncertain or suspicious email, especially one requesting a transfer, stop and analyse it calmly before acting. We hope everyone takes care to protect their assets during property transactions and completes their purchase or sale smoothly.