Many agents not confident they can spot fraud
Summary
Research cited in the article suggests a significant proportion of letting agents lack confidence in identifying suspicious client money transactions, with more than a third saying they could not reliably spot fraud. The report also indicates that agents perceive fraud risk to be increasing, with AI-enabled impersonation and deepfake scams seen as a growing threat alongside more traditional phishing and landlord or tenant impersonation.
Why it matters
Fraud prevention is directly relevant to agents handling client money, tenancy payments and identity verification, and the same risks can affect surveyors involved in transactions or client-facing property work. The reference to potential strengthening of regulation also signals possible future compliance expectations for property professionals.
Key points
- More than a third of letting agents are not confident they can identify suspicious client transactions.
- Over half believe they are more exposed to fraud and scams than three years ago.
- AI-enabled impersonation and deepfake scams are seen as the biggest emerging threat.
- Phishing and impersonation of landlords or tenants remain common fraud methods.
- The article notes a possible move toward stronger regulation of property agents.
This is an RPSA summary of a publicly available article. The full content remains with the original publisher.
