Warning: Ghost Title Agencies
August 27, 2025
Last year, ALTA warned members about criminals setting up fake title company lawsuits. The threat of ghost title companies continues, as the Florida Land Title Association (FLTA) issued an alert about the scam to it members.
Fraudsters are creating fake agencies on Sunbiz.org (Florida’s central location for filing business entities) and opening bank accounts tied to the fake agency and creating fake websites.
Once these fake accounts are opened, the fraudsters contact a real estate professional looking for a contract and a buyer to use their fake agency. One title agency has identified five websites spoofing their agency and learned of a dozen transactions where the consumer has been or was close to being defrauded. Last year, Knight Barry Title shared how criminals were spoofing their agency.
The FLTA provided the following items to check if a title agency has been spoofed in Florida:
- Visit Sunbiz.org, specifically this page: Search Records - Division of Corporations - Florida Department of State
- Using the various search features, check for any duplicates or close to duplicate companies that resemble or are close to your company's name (Name, Officer/Registered Agent, etc.)
- Especially check for duplicate FEI/EIN registrations
- DNS Twister
- Check dnstwister.report
- This web site will perform a search for other domains similar to yours to help identify fake web pages acting as a real company.
- Alert your local authorities and follow their guidance, if action is necessary.
Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or [email protected].