Mortgage Cadence, an Accenture (NYSE: ACN) company, has integrated data from the American Land Title Association (ALTA) Title & Settlement Agent Registry (“the Registry”) into its Collaboration Center solution. This new integration enables users to immediately verify the identity of other individuals using the platform, which automates processes and facilitates the exchange of documents and information in the mortgage closing process.

ALTA launched the Registry in 2017 as the first national database of real estate attorneys, title insurance agents and settlement companies. In addition to contact information and branch locations for settlement firms, agents, and title companies, each Registry listing includes a title agent’s or real estate attorney’s unique seven-digit ALTA ID, which enables lenders to quickly verify the identity of the entity handling a transaction. With 8,000 confirmed records and more being added daily, the Registry is becoming an important tool in fighting cybercrime.

“The national ALTA Registry is a unique real estate utility created specifically for mortgage lenders and technology partners,” said Diane Tomb, ALTA’s CEO. “We’re pleased to offer this tool as an innovative product to Mortgage Cadence and its clients. The emergence of the ALTA Registry as an effective and easy-to-use source of data and information comes at the perfect time to help counter the alarming increase in wire fraud.”

Efficient and secure connectivity is one of the highest priorities for title agents and their customers. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network reports that attempted business email compromise (BEC) threats have increased to more than US$300 million per month from US$110 million per month in 2016. Further, the number of BEC suspicious activity reports increased to 1,100 per month last year, more than double the 500 reported per month, on average, in 2016.

Using the unique ALTA ID from the ALTA Registry, Collaboration Center immediately validates title agents during the account creation process to help ensure that all users are verified, ultimately adding vetting capabilities to increase the security of the network.

“The addition of ALTA Registry data in Collaboration Center adds another layer of defense against cybercrime and represents just one of the many steps Mortgage Cadence uses within the product to provide secure alternatives to email,” said Bryan Ireton, CEO and managing director of Mortgage Cadence, Accenture.

Mortgage Cadence’s Collaboration Center reinvents the way lending professionals and settlement-service firms interact. By automating processes, such as document comparison and email search; exchanging documents and data; and offering real-time messaging, it helps lenders increase efficiency and profitability. Further, the platform does not require massive data entry to deploy into production processes.

About Mortgage Cadence

Since 1999, Mortgage Cadence has been providing the best people, process, and technology for enterprise and mid-market lenders who desire to deliver an exceptional borrower experience. From point-of-sale through post-closing, Mortgage Cadence offers reliable software and dedicated people, supporting lenders every step of the way.

About ALTA

The American Land Title Association, founded in 1907, is a national trade association representing more than 6,300 title insurance companies, title and settlement agents, independent abstracters, title searchers, and real estate attorneys. ALTA members conduct title searches, examinations, closings, and issue title insurance that protects real property owners and mortgage lenders against losses from defects in titles.