As PropTech platforms digitise every stage of the property transaction, they are creating new attack surfaces for deepfake fraud. Here is what the sector needs to do before the next wave hits.
PropTech was supposed to make property transactions faster, cheaper, and more transparent. And in many ways, it has delivered. Digital offer processes, automated valuations, online conveyancing, and e-signature platforms have compressed the average property transaction timeline significantly.
But every digitised touchpoint is also a potential attack surface. And as deepfake technology matures, PropTech platforms are discovering that the identity verification they built for a pre-AI threat environment is no longer fit for purpose.
PropTech platforms typically handle identity at multiple points: agent onboarding, buyer registration, seller verification, tenancy applications, and mortgage pre-qualification. Each of these touchpoints involves collecting personal information and, increasingly, conducting digital identity checks.
Deepfake attackers target the weakest link. If a tenancy application only requires a selfie, they will generate a convincing deepfake selfie. If a buyer verification requires a video call, they will conduct that call through a deepfake overlay. If a digital signature requires a biometric, they will synthesise one.
The financial exposure is significant. A fraudulent tenancy signed with a deepfake identity leaves the landlord with an unenforceable contract and a tenant they cannot identify. A fraudulent buyer who transfers a deposit leaves the platform exposed to fraud liability claims.
Beyond the direct financial risk, there is a reputational dimension. PropTech platforms that become associated with property fraud — even as victims, not perpetrators — face serious damage to the trust that underpins their business model.
Most PropTech platforms have implemented some form of digital ID verification. The challenge is that many of these implementations were designed to satisfy basic AML requirements, not to resist active adversarial attacks.
A document check that verifies the authenticity of an ID but does not confirm the person presenting it is a real human — or that the human is not wearing a deepfake — provides compliance on paper but not genuine protection.
The most effective approach combines:
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