Growing hacker threat targeting real estate, business deals

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The FBI is warning businesses, realtors and the general public about a growing threat from hackers who are intercepting business and real estate deals.

Agents said people may think they’re emailing with a reputable company, when really it's a hacker.

[LINK: FBI warning on business e-mail hacking on the rise]

With a realtor, for example, a hacker could access a person’s account and pretend to be someone that a customer was already planning to send money to.

Channel 9 was the only crew given access to a meeting set up for Secret Service and FBI agents to warn realtors, bankers and others about scammers sneaking into email accounts.

Supervisory Special Agent Brian Cyprian said he sees new cases every week.

"I had one come through two days ago. The biggest concern for me is it's not one particular sector, it doesn't care who the victim is," Cyprian said.

Cyprian said hackers use malware to intercept your emails.

"They're going to work really hard to make it mirror maybe someone you've been in contact with," he said.

They pretend to be a CEO or bank and change the instructions for a wire transfer.

"It could be your life savings, if you're getting ready to purchase your home," Cyprian said.

The FBI is seeing a significant uptick in similar cases.

Within the last year, victims in North Carolina lost $7.5 million. In April, a Charlotte man was convicted for using this exact scam to cheat people out of $150,000.

Cyprian is hosting meetings like the one held at the police station Thursday to spread the word and stop others from falling into the trap. If they do, he said victims must report losses to the FBI within 72 hours for any chance of getting their money back.

[LINK: FBI Guide on Best Practices]

"The key concern is if you don't act quickly, the money is gone," he said.

To protect yourself, Cyprian insists people should not rely solely on email, but rather pick up the phone and call the company to make sure they’re sending money to the right place.

Another way people can protect themselves is to pay very close attention to the email address. Sometimes, hackers will change just one letter, but that could be the red flag that saves you.

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