The fraudulent message usually mimics your lawyer's office, sometimes from a nearly identical email address, and asks you to confirm or update account details right before funds are due to move, which is exactly when a seller is distracted and least likely to double-check.
The protection is simple and always available: call your lawyer's office using a number you already have on file, not one supplied in the suspicious message, before confirming or sending any banking information tied to legal fees, typically $800 to $1,500, or your sale proceeds.
Joel Dyck raises this risk with every seller as possession day approaches, since a two-minute phone call is the entire defence. Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.