Can Hackers Really Steal My House Title?
Companies flood TV and radio with commercials saying internet hackers are about to steal the title of your property. Can this happen?
By Tim Bennett
Radio and TV ads abound nowadays saying my house title is in danger of being stolen by internet hackers who will use it to take out big loans or, worse yet, to actually take possession of my house and kick me out.
Fear-based marketing has been effective for centuries to sell products, services, political candidates, remedies and more.
I’m contacted weekly by car warranty companies to offer me insurance in case something happens to my car. There’s no need to worry, they’ve got me covered. All I have to do is supposedly pay less now so I don’t pay more later. The local water company sends me a notice every year that I better pay them a little now to prevent paying them a lot later if my water system fails inside my property.
The question remains: what claims are legitimate that I need to act on and which ones should I ignore?
In reference to my home title being stolen online I cannot wrap my head around the idea that this would be so easy. Logically, I’m thinking, if it is so easy to get my deed off the internet and it is such a prevalent problem why don’t the governing bodies just take the deeds off the internet? To top it off, I’m told, banks who fall for this type of fraud are not responsible — I am! Can this thing really be true? Are county governments so stupid that they would keep putting home deeds online if it is so easy to steal them and commit fraud? It makes absolutely no sense.
Finally, after being sufficiently irritated by these constant scaremongering techniques, I made my move. I went to the town assessor’s office on Ball Road in the town of Onondaga and asked for the deed to my house. The woman there made a copy and gave it to me at no charge. I asked if “deed theft” was a problem in Onondaga County. She said she had never heard of it happening here. She then gave me a sheet explaining how I could get a text and an email notification from the county if something was done using my deed.
Yet, I needed more answers. I did some online research. Immediately, I discovered that this “service” offered in TV and radio commercials is actually a misnomer because the service provided by these companies does not put a “lock” on my title. They merely monitor the public records that alerts you if anything happens regarding your deed. They cannot prevent “stealing” this from happening. It just lets you know if it does. At that point you are on your own. For this service they charge you anywhere from $9.99 to $14.99 a month — something you can do yourself at no cost.
The most vocal company providing this service is based in California and marketed nationally. The following quotes about this company are from lawyers, government officials, a local assistant district attorney and the state attorney general from Maryland:
• “Do you need this service to protect your home from property thieves? The answer is no. Title fraud is very rare and hardly ever successful. If someone ever tries to transfer your deed without your permission or knowledge, like these title lock companies suggest could happen, the transfer is fraudulent and void from the onset”
(Consumer Alert from Brian E. Frosh, Maryland attorney general.)
• “Company XXXX is a scam, plain and simple. The company has manufactured a “home title theft” crisis to stir up fear amongst elderly homeowners and deceive them into buying a service that many local governments provide for free.”
(David Chiu, San Francisco city attorney, April 10, 2023, ).
“XXXX targets and preys upon elderly Californians whose homes are their chief source of financial security,” San Diego city attorney Mara W. Elliott said. “It convinces its customers that they will wind up penniless if they do not invest in services they do not need. XXXX’s conduct is not just illegal; it is unconscionable and cruel.”
In New York City, however, deed theft is a real problem, according to Letitia James, the attorney general of New York state. James said that she has received 6,000 deed theft claims in the last nine years. As a result, James pushed an anti-deed theft bill which was signed into law on Nov. 14, 2023, by Gov. Kathy Hochul and went into effect on Dec. 14, 2023. Besides helping lawyers to litigate these types of cases, another thing the bill does is prevent deed thieves from evicting real owners from their homes. In fraudulent deed cases occupiers of the homes are now granted a “stay” until the investigation is completed.
According to Peter Hakes, senior assistant DA to district attorney William Fitzpatrick and chief of the economic fraud and rackets bureau, deed theft in Onondaga County is rare and has only occurred three or four times in the last five years. All of these cases, Hakes said, involved people who knew the victim, not some random hackers who got the deeds online and forged signatures.
“After saying that, I must add that deed theft could be a growing problem in our area, especially with home prices going up and Micron coming to town elevating real estate values. Unfortunately, whenever there is big money to be made, unscrupulous people will try and find ways to tap into it,” he added.
Hakes went on to say that DA Fitzpatrick was a strong supporter of the anti-deed theft bill and several people from their staff are part of a deed theft task force in New York City. Hakes said this connection helps the office to stay pro-active and up to date on recent developments. In reference to Company XXXX, Hakes said he’d heard the ads and doesn’t discourage redundancy, but he said, “You may not want to pay $180 a year for something you can do yourself. Normally, an owner of residential property will receive a notice of sale from the county clerk’s office, which advises them of a change in ownership.”
So, XXXX scam or safety? You decide.
How to Monitor Your Deed
If you want receive notification if something happens in reference to your home deed from Onondaga County: https://shorturl.at/EG2Rf