Title partners' fraud tools change as CertifID buys again. Published October 01, 2026, 2:50 p.m. EDT Updated October 01, 2026, 3:40 p.m. EDT The consolidation wave is extending beyond mortgage lenders and servicers, with fraud prevention and escrow management companies joining forces to create a safer closing process. Title fraud prevention firm CertifID acquired Closinglock, bringing together complementary capabilities across identity verification, fraud prevention, secure payments and real estate closing workflows to better protect people and money throughout a real estate transaction, the companies announced in a press release Thursday. This was CertifID's second acquisition in the past few months, first buying CloseSimple, a closing communications and automation platform used by hundreds of title companies, in June. The company aimed to combine identification and fraud detection, payments and final closing under one roof with the purchase, and now adds to it. "Title companies are being asked to protect more, move faster and deliver a better experience at a time when the risks have never been greater," said Tyler Adams, CEO of CertifID, in the release. "The challenges facing the real estate industry are real, persistent and bigger than any one company or product can solve alone." CertifID's acquisition comes as title companies face increasingly sophisticated fraud threats, growing pressure and higher expectations from buyers, sellers and real estate agents. Real estate fraud losses grew more than twice as fast as overall reported cybercrime losses last year, FBI IC3 data showed. Real estate wire fraud was also a top target for Business Email Compromise scams, which topped $3 billion in losses in 2025, according to the release. The combined organization will have approximately 220 employees and serve more than 3,000 title companies and 35,000 title professionals across the United States. Together, the companies have moved more than $7 billion in real estate payments and expect to protect 2.5 million real estate transactions this year. Discover how connected technology, integrated data and AI-embedded workflows can reduce silos and improve efficiency. Partner Insights from SitusAMC CertifID will continue investing in an open ecosystem across title production systems, title underwriters and other third-party platforms, the company said. "With continued headwinds in the real estate market, our responsibility is to deliver more protection and value for our customers without asking them to change platforms or restructure workflows," Adams said. Colin McNamara is a reporter for National Mortgage News. He recently graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism and minor in general business... Read full bio

CertifID, a real estate fraud prevention platform, has acquired Closinglock, an escrow management platform for secure money movement in real estate. The acquisition combines identity verification, fraud prevention, secure payments, and closing workflows to protect transactions. The deal comes as real estate fraud losses grew more than twice as fast as overall cybercrime losses last year, according to FBI IC3 data. Business Email Compromise scams in real estate topped $3 billion in losses. CertifID protected 1.55 million transactions in 2025 and recovered $145 million in stolen funds. Closinglock has protected over $900 billion across 2 million transactions. Together, they've moved more than $7 billion in real estate payments. The combined company will employ approximately 220 people and serve over 3,000 title companies across the United States. CertifID CEO Tyler Adams will lead the merged entity, whilst Closinglock CEO Andy White becomes Chief Strategy Officer.

Closinglock launches payment tools to secure homebuyer funds. Title companies can quickly refund earnest money if a transaction is canceled Article Summary. Closinglock has launched SecurePay open payment links and buyer earnest money deposit (EMD) returns, allowing title companies to securely accept and refund buyer funds through a single platform. SecurePay links accept earnest money, option fees and closing costs before a file opens. EMD returns use pre-verified bank accounts to deliver refunds by the next business day. AI Summary Closinglock has launched two new capabilities designed to protect homebuyers' funds throughout the real estate transaction process, including when a deal falls through. The escrow management platform introduced the SecurePay open payment link and buyer earnest money deposit (EMD) returns, enabling title and settlement companies to manage both incoming and outgoing buyer funds through a single platform. The SecurePay open payment link allows buyers to securely submit earnest money, option fees, cash-to-close and other closing costs at any time, even before a transaction file is opened. Title companies can place the link on their websites, emails and email signatures, with payments automatically matched to the appropriate file once it is created, Closinglock added. "We added the payment link to our intro letters and secure earnest money payments started coming in right away," said Melissa Neesen, vice president of operations at Reliable Title. "No file needed, no data entry and it's working really well. I think this is going to be a great addition to our workflow." The second feature, buyer EMD returns, allows title companies to quickly refund earnest money if a transaction is canceled. Because the buyer's bank account has already been verified during the original payment, refunds can be initiated with pre-filled payment information, built-in approval workflows, real-time tracking and a full audit trail. According to Closinglock, funds are delivered by the next business day. Closinglock said it has protected $800 billion-plus across more than 2 million real estate transactions without losing funds to fraud. "We've spent years making sure money gets into escrow safely," said Andy White, CEO of Closinglock. "The harder problem was always what happens when it has to come back out. A verified payment shouldn't turn into a manual refund process. If we already know the buyer's account is real, sending their money home should be just as fast as taking it in."