Fraud is fast becoming the crime of the 21st century, with identity theft at the forefront of a whole range of major crimes – from people smuggling and drug trafficking to money laundering and real estate title fraud. According to the RCMP, one in six Canadians will be victims of some sort of identity theft in 2008. This will result in losses estimated to be close to $3 billion. In the U.S., the FBI estimates losses there will reach as high as $30 billion.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the world. Seniors are particularly at risk, especially when it comes to threats like real estate title fraud. Seniors typically own more equity in their homes than most of the population, making them more vulnerable to fraudulent schemes than ever before, especially as real estate prices continue to appreciate across Canada.

Most fraud starts with identity theft – and it can take many forms. It often involves the use of fraudulent, forged or stolen identification. Your driver’s licence, Social Insurance Number (SIN) card, birth certificate, citizenship card, passport, etc. can be used to apply for credit cards, loans, mortgages, cell phones, purchases – or even used to sell your home without your knowledge.

Vigilance remains the best protection against identity theft and other types of fraud. Carry only necessary ID – put your SIN card, birth certificate or citizenship card in a safety deposit box; don’t give your personal information to anyone on the phone or over the internet; be careful with emails that request you log on to websites (banks will never send you an email asking you to log into your bank account!). Also, remember that there are low-cost products out there that can offer added security – from identity theft protection to title insurance to protect your home.

FCT estimates the average case of real estate title fraud to be in the range of $300,000. In comparison, the RCMP pegs the average credit card fraud case in Canada to be around $1,200. Although real estate title fraud is far less frequent than other forms of fraud arising from identity theft, it is a violation that can have devastating and long lasting effects on its victims. And one of the great injustices about this type of fraud is that perpetrators are rarely caught.

Again, it usually starts with identity theft, and it can be quite simple. A fraudster targets a house, forges a transfer deed, registers title to the property in his or her own name, forges a discharge of the existing mortgage and borrows against the clear title. In the event of identity theft, a victim faces financial losses, banking issues and ruined credit history. Identity theft protection allows a consumer to recover losses quickly.

Important strides have been made, and governments are doing their part to legislate in favour of victims of real estate title fraud – but legislation can only compensate for so much. Again, awareness and caution remain the best protection against identity theft and other types of fraud, and consumers should be aware that there are low-cost products out there that can offer added security – from identity theft protection to title insurance. FCT recently began offering identity theft coverage to its title insurance policyholders.

In North America, nearly 30 per cent of fraud victims are seniors. They are more vulnerable because typically they are more trusting, or sometimes they are isolated and lonely, and often they have more assets than the rest of us. Seniors are often targeted by fraudsters with sweepstake offers, product offers, telemarketing, shady investments, funeral arrangement offers, shady home repair offers, or simply they fall victim to real estate title fraud. Most importantly, they usually own more equity in their homes than most of the population, making them more vulnerable to fraudulent schemes than ever before, especially as real estate prices continue to appreciate across Canada.

Seniors – and their families – need to be vigilant and knowledgeable of con schemes. Awareness and caution remains the best protection against identity theft and other types of fraud. Some tips include: don’t give out personal information, ask for advice from family members about an offer, beware of free prizes (if it’s too good to be true, it probably is), and never rush into anything involving your money or your property. Once again, identity theft protection and title insurance are two low-cost solutions that can offer tremendous protection.

FCT believes that awareness and caution remains the best protection against fraud, including identity theft and real estate title fraud. Over the past four years, we have embarked on a number of high-profile consumer campaigns and partnerships to raise awareness of the issue of real estate title fraud and identity theft. We have also built fraud prevention into the way we do business – in 2007 more than 42,000 transactions were flagged and deemed potentially fraudulent through internal investigations by FCT’s underwriting department. This vigilance prevented more than $23 million in potential claims related to fraud.