Survey: Title Companies Report Increase in Cyberattacks But Mitigation Efforts Help

More than 90% of title insurance companies reported the volume of cybercrime attempts increased or remained the same over the past year, according to a Cybercrime & Wire Fraud Study sponsored by the ALTA Land Title Institute.

Over half of the 470 title professionals surveyed reported an increase in cybercrime attempts from 2021 to 2022, while another 40% reported similar volume of attacks. This is up from 86% that reported an increase or comparable level of incidents from 2020 to 2021.

“Fraud attempts are increasing compared to a year ago, meaning title and settlement companies must be even more vigilant,” said Diane Tomb, ALTA’s chief executive officer. “In response to the increased attacks, more companies have mitigation efforts in place, so while there is still significant concern about the issue, companies are better equipped to protect their businesses and customers.”

Companies with higher transaction volume were targeted with more frequency. According to the survey, 73% of companies with over 250 closings monthly experienced an increase in cybercrime compared to 61% of those with 76 to 250 closings and 38% with 75 closings or less.

While fraud attempts remain elevated, mitigation efforts are helping and more companies are reporting the ability to recover diverted funds. In 2022, 26% companies reported that they were able to recover the total amount of funds incorrectly transferred due to fraud compared to only 17% in 2021. Additionally, two thirds of companies reported recovering more than half of the stolen funds.

When there are losses, a company’s insurance provider typically did not cover its losses due to cybercrime in 2022. Of the businesses that experienced losses, 54% reported their insurance policy did not cover any of the amount, 10% reported that some of the losses were paid, 5% said most losses were paid. Only 7% indicated all the total amount was covered.

Most companies reported that average consumer losses were $100,000 or less, including 14% that reported losses under $1,000, 22% with $1,000 to $25,000, and 24% with $26,000 to $100,000. Two-thirds of companies reported that customers who transferred funds to the wrong account due to fraud were assisted by financial institutions to recover the funds, followed by insurers (23%) and the FBI (22%).

“It’s important that all fraud attempts get reported to authorities, however, cybercrime in the land title industry is underreported,” Tomb said. “While nearly 60% of companies report successful wire fraud attempts to the FBI via the Internet Crime Complaint Center, only a third notify the bureau about attempted fraud.”

Efforts to Reduce Fraud

Compared to last year, there has been a significant increase in the share of companies that conduct mitigation efforts. In 2023, the survey showed that 86% of companies reported to engage in mitigation activities and services compared to 63% in 2022. Two thirds of the companies surveyed reported spending up to $25,000 annually on mitigation efforts.

The survey showed nearly all companies inform customers about the risks of cybercrime targeting real estate transactions. The most common methods include standard warnings on email (85%), oral or telephone warnings (67%), written information mailed to consumers (41%) and specific warnings on the company websites (41%). Companies also often remind customers about cybercrime risks throughout the transaction process. According to the survey, 64% of companies communicated with customers frequently using written reminders, 31% provided warnings or education at the beginning of the transaction process and 30% did so at the time of closing.

“Title insurance companies protect their business and customers by conducting a range of mitigation efforts, including customer and real estate agent training, simulated phishing testing of employees and wire/payee verification software,” Tomb said. “Additionally, companies use ALTA resources, such as the Rapid Response Plan & Outgoing Wire Prep Checklist to protect against fraud. These mitigation efforts help to ease concern of future fraud. While cybercrime remains a major issue, the share of companies concerned that it would impact business over the next 12 to 18 months declined from a year ago.”

New Jersey Passes New Data Privacy Law

New Jersey recently became the 14 state to pass or enact comprehensive data privacy legislation.

N.J. Gov Phil Murphy on Jan. 16 signed S332/A1971, which requires the notification to consumers of collection and disclosure of personal data by certain entities, including internet websites and online providers. Under the legislation, these entities are required to notify customers of the collection and disclosure of personal information to other third parties and to provide customers with an ability to opt-out of that collection or disclosure.

The law will go into effect Jan. 15, 2025.

The legislation contains an exemption for personal data subject to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), along with an exemption for publicly available information. ALTA has held that any comprehensive data privacy legislation should include an exemption for entities subject to the GLBA. Since 1999, this federal law has strictly limited financial institutions’ use and sharing of customers’ personal information. 

The legislation also entitles consumers to know what data is held by the operator, so they have the ability to correct or delete incorrect information. The operator also must limit the collection of personal data to what is adequate, relevant, and reasonably necessary to their business and they must specify the express purposes for which personal data are processed.

Other states to pass data privacy legislation include California, Oregon, Montana, Utah, Colorado, Texas, Iowa, Indiana, Tennessee, Virigina, Florida, Delaware and Connecticut.

How to Renew Your ALTA Membership or Policy Forms License

Here are steps to help guide you through the process of renewing your ALTA membership or Policy Forms License. 

How to Renew Membership After Feb. 1

To renew your ALTA membership after Feb. 1, you will need to sign into the ALTA site and go to Become a Member (alta.org). This can be found be found hovering your mouse over Membership in the top menu bar and selecting the Become a Member link.

Once the Become a Member link has been selected, you would select Purchase for the Company/Agency/Firm.

Answer the following questions to qualify for the appropriate membership dues.

After answering the question, you will find the membership as a product, select Add to Cart and then click the Review & Checkout button.

Upon completing checkout, you will have successfully renewed the yearly membership.

Membership Renewal

• Primary or Secondary contacts have the admin privileges to renew online, to do so log into the ALTA site. If you don’t have your login information, please click here to retrieve it.
• If you are a primary or secondary contact your profile screen will load into the ALTA site and should look like this:

• You can initiate the renewal process by clicking on the Renew Button listed on the My Account page.
• If your organization membership expired in 2022, you will need to renew your membership by going to Become a Member.

• ALTA Memberships and Policy Forms Licenses (PFLs) can only be purchased for organizations. You will know if it is an organization account if you see a building icon. There also will be the options on the right, the left option is your individual profile.

Policy Forms License Renewal

• ALTA policy forms licenses can be renewed here: Get a Subscription. Only primary or secondary contacts have the ability to renew the PFL for an organization. If you don’t have your login information, please click here to retrieve it.
• The Policy Forms License renewal can also be found by going to the ALTA page:
  • Hovering the mouse over Membership in the top menu options, this will prompt a drop down menu to appear.
  • In the right side of the drop down menu, you will see Non-Member Options which has Policy Forms License and Print Policy Forms License Certificate options. Select Policy Forms License.

• Non-Member Options page will load (you can download your certificates here), select the Purchase a License button.

• Purchase for your organization.
• Select Policy Forms License (paid).

• This item may show up as $500 by default but select this item there will be a questionnaire that will affect the pricing on the next step.

• If your answers fit the criteria for price change, they will take place before final checkout on the next screen.

• After selecting checkout, you will have renewed your organization’s Policy Forms License for 2024. You will be able to download a certificate here: ALTA - Print Policy Forms License Certificate.
• Please give the system some time to sync up after renewing before trying to print.

Top 10 Most Read Articles of 2023

10. Report: $1.4B in Suspected Wire Fraud Identified by CertifID in 2022

CertifID identified $1.4 billion in suspected wire fraud attempts during 2022, according to a report released by the wire fraud protection firm.

9. 3 Common Misconceptions About Password Security

You may be surprised to learn that some commonly held beliefs about passwords are more harmful than helpful. This article highlights three of these misconceptions to ensure that you and your business are armed with the right information to keep up with the latest password security best practices.

8. ALTA Unveils New Brand Identity and Website

ALTA unveiled its new brand identity—redesigned for the first time in nearly 60 years to reflect how the industry has adapted in the digital age—and revamped website during ALTA ONE, the largest annual event for the land title insurance industry.

7. Suing and Serving Phantoms and Ghosts in Real Estate Quiet Title Cases

The overall objectives of pursuing a quiet title action is to bring in all interested parties that have an interest in the property before the court, to resolve the title problem and to obtain a title for the plaintiff that is marketable and insurable by a title insurance company for a sale or refinance. Both the legal and financial stakes can be high in quiet title litigation because without a clear title the owner cannot sell or refinance, and a lender cannot protect its priority title position.

6. Digital Closings Increase, but Barriers Slow Adoption

Fully digital or hybrid closings increased to 10% of all transactions last year compared to 7% of all deals closed in 2021, according to a study sponsored by the ALTA Land Title Institute.

5. Eleventh Circuit Finds No Coverage for Fraudulent Wire Transfer Under Cybercrime Endorsement

Stephen Gregory, claims counsel for WFG National Title Insurance Co., reviews a recent decision by the U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals that affirmed a title company did not have coverage for a fraudulent wire transfer under the cybercrime endorsement of its cybersecurity policy. Read on for the facts of the case.

4. Buyer Suffers Wire Fraud Loss, Not Escrow Company 

A buyer bore the loss when she fell for the trap of phishing wire transfer instructions and wired the purchase money to a fraudster and not the escrow company, the Nevada Court of Appeals held. Read on to learn why this ruling is helpful to the title and settlement industry.

3. Red Flags and Tips to Help Prevent Seller Impersonation in Real Estate

Real estate transactions have been a prime target of cybercrime over the past decade. There is little sign of this slowing even as the housing market continues to slow. Instead, fraudsters continue to evolve their scam and money laundering tactics to avoid detection.

2. Guidance on How FDIC Protects Escrow Accounts, Bank Deposits

In light of multiple bank failures, title and escrow professionals should understand how the FDIC protects bank deposits, including title agency funds, escrow funds and independent customer funds. Read on to learn about the FDIC insurance limits, how this impacts escrow accounts, what you should tell your customers and relevant ALTA Best Practices.

1. ALTA Publishes Major Revision to Best Practices

The revisions were made with the specific objective of allowing title agents and direct operations to continually improve their practices and procedures to ensure financial, data security and operational stability, and to provide lenders and other constituents with the assurances that their needs are being fulfilled by these efforts.

 

3 Common Misconceptions About Password Security

By Alex Hamlin

Everyone knows that choosing a strong password is a critical step in securing the various systems and accounts we all use daily. However, you may be surprised to learn that some commonly held beliefs about passwords are more harmful than helpful. This article highlights three of these misconceptions to ensure that you and your business are armed with the right information to keep up with the latest password security best practices.

1. I Have One Very Secure Password. That’s All I Need!

One of the most common misconceptions about password security is that individuals need just one password for all of their websites and systems, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Consider the following scenario:

Alice uses the same username and secure password to log into three websites:

• a.com
• b.com
• c.com

While a.com and b.com follow security best practices, c.com is not so diligent. Eve, a hacker, compromises c.com, including their database of usernames and unencrypted passwords. Despite Alice’s use of a strong password, Eve is now in possession of Alice’s login credentials, and is able to compromise her accounts on a.com and b.com because they use the same password.

This attack is known as a credential stuffing attack. It is one of the most common ways that account compromises happen. Had Alice used different, equally secure passwords for each a.com, b.com, and c.com, her accounts for a.com and b.com would still be protected, even after c.com was compromised.

However, using a unique, secure password for every account is easier said than done. The average user accesses dozens of websites per day. That’s a lot of passwords to try and memorize! Thankfully, there are tools called password managers that can help. Password managers are applications that automatically generate and store unique, secure passwords for each website a user visits. All of these passwords are locked behind a single master password, reducing the memorization burden for the user.

Password managers automatically fill in a unique password on each website a user visits, protecting against credential stuffing attacks and saving time spent typing long passwords into login screens. Not many security tools also boost productivity!

Password managers, however, can present a single point of failure, and users should perform due diligence to ensure the specific tool they choose has a stellar reputation and follows security best practices. Additionally, the chosen master password for the password manager must be very strong to keep attackers from accessing all of the passwords stored within the tool.

Keep reading to learn some of the common misconceptions around password security, and how to ensure your master password is secure.

2. Complex Characters Are The Most Important Part of a Secure Password

“Your password must contain lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, special characters, a day of the week, the title of a novel, your favorite ice cream flavor…”

We’ve all seen password requirement prompts with a plethora of conditions that can be challenging to satisfy. These requirements have even been satirized as online puzzle games.

While these prompts may sometimes seem unnecessarily demanding in their requests for multiple character types, there's a good reason for it. Using a wider array of characters increases the range of possible passwords, making them harder for attackers to guess. That said, complex characters are not the most important part of a strong password.

When it comes to choosing a secure password, length is actually the most important component. Each additional character in a password exponentially increases its security. In fact, length is so important to a strong password that some experts have argued that we should stop using the word “password,” and instead call them “passphrases,” to encourage the use of more than one word. Passwords (or passphrases) made up of multiple, random words are easier to memorize, easier to type, and tend to be even more secure than shorter, more complex passwords.

Consider the chart below, published by Hive Systems, which shows the amount of time required for an attacker to brute force a password in 2023. In this chart, an easy-to-memorize password made up of a set of random words such as AspenDogTurqoise would take an attacker 713 years to brute force, whereas a hard-to-memorize password such as L6!h;’3[ could be brute-forced in only five minutes.

A great way to combine length and character complexity is to use a full sentence as a password, complete with capitalization and punctuation. It’s important not to use a common phrase or famous quote, as those can be easy to guess. Rather, make up a nonsense sentence that will be easy to remember, like Wow, 6 pink cats! This passphrase would take 380 billion years to brute force according to the chart above!

3. Passwords Should Be Changed Often

For many years, security experts have advised that users should change their passwords regularly, as frequently as once every 90 days. The logic behind this advice is that users often use the same password in multiple places, placing them at risk of compromise and credential stuffing attacks (see above). As such, proactively and regularly changing passwords was believed to be helpful in stopping this sort of attack in its tracks.

However, this advice has been recently challenged, with new research finding that the security benefits of regularly changing passwords are minimal. It turns out that when users are forced to regularly change their passwords, users change them in very predictable ways, such as incrementing a number at the end of the password or substituting one special character for another. This predictability allows attackers to still succeed at credential stuffing attacks by just trying a small number of variations on the stolen passwords.

What’s more, the practice of regularly changing passwords can result in users choosing weaker passwords that are easier to memorize (and easier for attackers to guess). Such frequent password changes can also create an administrative headache for companies trying to promote a strong security culture.

This research has led to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to revise their guidance in Special Publication 800-63B to advise against arbitrarily expiring passwords. Additionally, Microsoft has removed the ability to set arbitrary password expiration in some of its software, and the FTC has published a fantastic summary of the research and changing guidance in this area.

It’s still important to defend against credential stuffing attacks, however the use of unique passwords, made easier with the use of password managers, is a significantly stronger defense. That being said, it is still important for users to change their passwords if they ever have reason to believe a password may be compromised.

Conclusion

Despite being integral to our digital lives, passwords are still a relatively new phenomena, and the research around what makes them secure is rapidly evolving. This means that what is considered the height of password security today may not be the same a year from now. It’s critical that we stay up to date on the latest best practices and remain open to having our preconceptions challenged. Doing so will help us continuously improve the security of our businesses, our operations, and our own personal lives.

Alex Hamlin, a member of ALTA’s Information Security Work Group, is head of information security for Qualia Labs Inc. He can be reached at [email protected].

Report: Closing Professionals Juggling too Many Tasks

Source: PropLogix

The biggest daily challenge for title professionals is juggling too many different responsibilities, according to a report provided by PropLogix.

In the 2023 State of the Title Industry Report, 38% of title professionals surveyed said they must handle too many tasks faced with elevated expectations, but little to-no control of timelines and deadlines. This duality creates a lot of stress and frustration, according to the report.

“Despite the tough conditions in the market, it seems surprising to see title professionals in closing and escrow roles are still feeling overwhelmed by juggling too many tasks,” said Lindsey Gordon, PropLogix director of communications. “However, it’s important to remember that many companies have had to make staffing cuts proportional to their order drops—meaning those who remain are shouldering the workload. On the flip side, those in high-level positions who own or run title companies are most challenged by finding ways to generate new business. This report helps to demonstrate how outsourcing can help fix both issues by eliminating additional workload and freeing up time to maintain existing and earn new business.”

The survey included results from more than 400 title agents, with nearly half operating in the South.

The survey focused on how industry trends impact title professionals’ daily responsibilities and their title production and outsourcing practices. The most outsourced title production piece is municipal lien searches (83%), which uncovers unrecorded debt and permit issues, followed by title searches (73%). Thirty-eight percent of respondents say the top title production task they are considering outsourcing is lien release tracking, which beat out HOA certificates for the first time this year (32%).

The report featured insight from five different title industry experts, including ALTA CEO Diane Tomb.

“We know these are really tough times and sometimes it’s easy to just put your head down and hope you can get through it,” Tomb said. “But I think really stepping up and being part of the industry is valuable to all of us right now, particularly as we face some of these biggest challenges on the regulatory front.”

ALTA Announces Winners of the 2023 Our Values Awards

Three winners of the ALTA Our Values Awards were honored during ALTA ONE, which was held Oct. 10-13 in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The awards program showcases the title insurance industry’s Our Values initiative, which serves as a cultural compass and highlights core ideals ALTA members embrace. 

The two individual awards represented the We Lead and We Protect values. The third award for Collaboration was given to the leader of a branch, group or team that lives Our Values consistently and demonstrates an extraordinary level of positive impact on those who rely on their services.

Jamie A. Kosofsky, executive vice president of business development and compliance and founding partner of Brady & Kosofsky in Charlotte, N.C., won the We Lead Award for championing the proper and effective use of notary services for more than 15 years and leading the way in remote online notarization (RON) legislation. His firm was the first in North Carolina to perform a full in person electronic notary (IPEN) purchase transaction and complete a fully remote online closing utilizing the North Carolina Emergency Video Notarization Act. Kosofsky was one of the leading proponents and drafters of the North Carolina Remote Electronic Notary Act, which was passed in July 2022.

“I am still a little bit in shock to have won a leadership award,” Kosofsky said. “Leadership did not come easily; in fact, my inability to lead almost cost me my job. Law school did not teach me to be a leader. I think I went through 30 or so employees in a period of a year because I did not have the skills. After members of my team pulled me into a room and gave me a ‘good talking to,’ I started reading and learning about how to lead people. From that point, I realized it was always about the people.”  

David D. Lanaux, president of Title Professionals of Florida in Fort Myers, Fla., won the We Protect Award for his tenacity and persistence in fighting fraud. Since establishing a unique quality-control system and check points for staff, Lanaux’s policies and procedures have resulted in zero fraud-related losses to his agency in more than a decade.

“I am deeply grateful for this recognition and accept it on behalf of myself and my staff, without whom I would not be here,” Lanaux said. “I would like to extend my appreciation to ALTA for acknowledging the importance of preventing land fraud and the protection of consumers’ property and funds. Seven years ago, I changed the culture of my company from clearing title as being the No. 1 priority to emphasizing ID theft detection and consumer funds protection as our No. 1 priority. Clear title will follow. Together, we can make a difference in safeguarding our industry and ensuring the security of our consumers’ property and their funds.” 

Finally, Kathy Kwak, chief operating officer of Proper Title in Chicago, won the Collaboration Award for being a true example of collaborative leadership for her staff. Kwak’s inclusive decision-making, employee engagement, mentorship and commitment to community initiatives exemplify her as a valuable leader.

“I am truly honored, humbled and was quite shocked when I found out I was the recipient of the ALTA Our Values We Collaborate Award,” said Kathy Kwak, chief operating officer for Proper Title. “When I started seven years ago at Proper Title, I had no idea what I was ‘in for.’ Then COVID hit, and the company’s world was turned upside down. We just celebrated our 10-year anniversary, and it made me reflect on how much we have grown together as a company. Most importantly, we have maintained a culture of collaboration, volunteerism, inclusion, camaraderie and mutual respect. I couldn’t be prouder to be leading a company full of people who believe in the same mission. We all bleed (Proper) blue through and through.”

“Congratulations to all of the ALTA Our Values Award winners,” said ALTA CEO Diane Tomb. “Not only are these ALTA members upholding Our Values, they are championing the title insurance industry, growing their businesses and local communities and supporting the association. From a RON champion to a fraud warrior to a passionate, purposeful leader—I am proud to have each of these people in the ALTA family.”

ALTA Survey: Digital Closings Increase, but Barriers Slow Adoption

Fully digital or hybrid closings increased to 10% of all transactions last year compared to 7% of all deals closed in 2021, according to a study sponsored by the ALTA Land Title Institute.

The survey included results from 399 title professionals and businesses that operate across 46 states and Washington, D.C. Most of the survey respondents had an average of 75 closings or less each month (57%), with the remainder divided almost evenly between 76 to 250 closings (21%) and over 250 closings (22%).

“Title professionals continue to lead the way by implementing technology to meet customer needs and expectations,” said Diane Tomb, ALTA’s chief executive officer. “Digital closings offer a secure alternative to complete real estate and mortgage transactions and provide an option for people who can’t physically be in the presence of a notary, such as those serving overseas in the military or the elderly. Our members are always meeting the customers’ preferred closing method, whether it is online, in person or hybrid in some fashion.”

While in-person paper closings comprise the majority of transactions, digital and remote closings have become more popular compared to a year ago. Businesses offer a wide range of digital and remote closing options, including different tools like remote online notarization (RON), In Person Electronic Notarization (IPEN) and remote ink notarization (RIN).

In 2022, the survey showed that title and settlement companies offering some type of digital or remote closing increased to 61% in. This increase is largely attributed to transactions using RON. Fully digital closings were still uncommon, accounting for 2.5% of all transactions in 2022 compared to 2.2% in 2021. In contrast, hybrid closings had some growth, increasing from 5% of all transactions in 2021 to nearly 8% in 2022.

Continued Adoption

More than two thirds of the companies surveyed expect the volume of digital closings to increase, however, several barriers hinder growth. Of the businesses that currently do not offer RON, 44% plan to implement it in the future. About 45% of those businesses expect to adopt the technology as soon as it is authorized, another 22% plan to adopt it with in next one to two years.

The top three obstacles to companies expanding or adopting RON are:

• Lack of lender acceptance (84%)
• Insufficient testing with lenders (79%)
• Lack of consumer technology capabilities (78%)

The survey showed that over 76% of businesses currently using RON would expand their use of the technology if they received more requests from lenders. Lender acceptance is a significant hurdle for digital closings. A recent study by SnapDocs found that only 11% of lenders offer full digital closings.

Currently, 44 have passed laws allowing use of RON. At the federal level, the bipartisan Securing and Enabling Commerce Using Remote and Electronic Notarization Act (S. 1212), introduced by Sens. Cramer (R-N.D.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.), has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The house passed its version of the ALTA-supported SECURE Act by a voice vote in February.

Key Benefits

Businesses that offer RON identified decreased closing time as the greatest benefit of the technology. Companies with larger volume experienced more benefits from RON, indicating efficiencies of scale. Businesses with over 250 closings per month experienced time and cost savings of RON more often than those with smaller transaction volumes. For example, 52% of businesses with larger closing volumes agreed that RON decreased closing time due to the review of documents ahead of time compared to 44% of those with smaller transaction volumes.

“Digital closings provide many benefits to companies, including expense reduction by not having to print documents and time savings by being able to review and sign documents in advance,” Tomb said. “Continued awareness and understanding of how to use the technology will drive further adoption of this technology.”

ALTA ONE: The Future Leader

Technology is rewriting the rules of society. Between innovations like artificial intelligence and automation and the daily flood of new apps, gadgets and digital tools, it’s easy to get lost in how quickly and profoundly our world is changing.

During an Omni Session at ALTA ONE, Rahaf Harfoush discussed what it means to exist in a world where human characteristics are being replicated by machines and examined how technology is weaving itself into the social fabric of our lives.

Harfoush, a digital anthropologist and executive director of the Red Thread Institute of Digital Culture, focused on the intersection between emerging technology and digital culture during her presentation titled, “The Future Leader.”

Harfoush opened talking about a company called Replika, a chatbot companion powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that doesn’t just talk to people—it learns their texting styles to mimic them. A paid premium tier of the program allowed people to have romantic relationships with their bot friend.

“Is it ethical to build a business designed to gamify intimacy?” Harfoush asked. “Research shows that every one of us could fall in love with technology.”

Harfoush said people have become addicted to their phones. She cited a study that found people touch their phone 2,617 times a day. When we check our phones, the brain releases a small amount of dopamine. “What if you gave an individual 2,600 doses of a drug a day?” Harfoush asked.

She continued by saying that the constant use of smartphones hinders innovation. To innovate, requires de-stimulation.

“The brain needs to be calm. It means you need to be bored,” Harfoush said. “We’ve created this cycle where we are never bored.”

At work, there’s the contradiction where we’re always encouraged to learn new tools and prioritize urgency. However, there’s a cost associated with interruptions. Businesses in America lose nearly $650 billion per year due to employees being distracted at work.

“Focus has become an important skill to develop and strengthen,” Harfoush said. “As a leader, you must practice time away from your phone and concentrate on tasks. You can have the best tools, but if you can’t focus, it won’t help your business.”

She encouraged attendees to examine all the technology used in their operations to see if it’s helping or causing disruptions.

“We are moving to a new iteration of the web called generative tech,” Harfoush said. “These tools are so fast they can create content for us. We risk losing the mastery of thinking if we’re not careful about how we implement tech tools. Anytime you implement a new technology, leaders need to know what skill set is needed to keep being developed to get the most out of the tool. If you have weak knowledge systems, it will collapse your process.”

ALTA Good Deeds Foundation Awards $105K in Grants

The ALTA Good Deeds Foundation awarded a $5,000 grant to Partners in Housing, a family crisis housing nonprofit in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The ALTA Good Deeds Foundation awarded $105,000 in grants to 20 charities during ALTA ONE in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“By providing grants to small community nonprofits, the ALTA Good Deeds Foundation is able to make an enormous impact,” said Foundation Board Chair Mary O’Donnell, president and CEO of Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. and past president of ALTA. “In some cases, these grants cover a charity’s entire annual budget. I am excited to see how this round of grants helps local neighborhoods across the country grow and flourish.”

The $5,000 individual grants were awarded to:

• Administration of Resources and Choices, Tucson, Ariz.
• Allegany County Habitat for Humanity, LaVale, Md.
• Bobbo’s Fund for Young Hearts, Nottingham Park, Ill.
• Family Promise of Greater Rochester, Rochester, N.Y.
• Family Promise of Hendricks County, Plainfield, Ind.
• Fighting Children’s Cancer Foundation, Fairfield, N.J.
• Habitat for Humanity-Idaho Falls, Idaho Falls, Idaho
• Healthy Acadia, Ellsworth, Maine
• Home for Families, Woodland Hills, Calif.
• Kent Attainable Housing, Chestertown, Md.
• Kids’ Meals, Houston, Texas
• Mariposa Disaster Relief, Catheys Valley, Calif.
• Operation Vet First Foundation, Saint Cloud, Fla.
• Our Destiny Our Future Foundation, Phoenix
• Thrive with Autism Foundation, Magnolia, Texas
• Treasure Valley Family YMCA, Boise, Idaho
• United Housing, Memphis, Tenn.
• Urban Ministry, Birmingham, Ala.
• Willow Charitable Fund, Montgomeryville, Pa.

The foundation also awarded a $5,000 grant to Partners in Housing, a family crisis housing nonprofit in Colorado Springs, Colo., the host city of this year’s ALTA ONE. Watch this video to see an example of the types of charitable organizations that receive grants from the ALTA Good Deeds Foundation. 

“Since the inception of the ALTA Good Deeds Foundation in October 2020, ALTA members and the Foundation Board have raised more than $1.2 million,” said ALTA CEO Diane Tomb. “To date, the Foundation has awarded $844,000—approximately 70% of the funds raised—to community nonprofits. I am incredibly proud to be part of an industry that supports this meaningful work.”

The ALTA Good Deeds Foundation was launched in 2020 to bolster the charitable efforts of ALTA members. Land title insurance professionals can apply for grants on behalf of recognized 501(c)(3) organizations that they support financially or through volunteer efforts; preference is given to housing-related charities. The inaugural round of grants was announced in March 2021.