1. The prevention of fraud in land registration systems
Jon Atkey, United Kingdom
WPLA Workshop, Sofia, April 2009

2. Introduction An on-going topic in the WPLA work programme
WPLA fifth session, 19–20 November 2007, Geneva:
Initial limited survey of delegates re on-line fraud
Results inconclusive
More work needed to be done
A pan-European issue
Increasing concern by stakeholders

3. Land registers .
Title plans
An example from the UK
Documents referred to on the register – eg mortgages 
Web-based service for the general public.
Income approx £350,000 per month.

4. Why now? Fraud & forgery exist wherever there is commercial activity
Electronic technology has created new opportunities for fraud
Electronic land registration systems are now the norm throughout the UN-ECE region
Online access is becoming increasingly common

5. Why now? Feedback from law enforcement agencies The cost of fraud
To the individual
To land registration authorities
To the confidence in individual countries’ governments
WPLA members need:
to be alert to changing risks
Strategies to protect against fraud
To maintain stakeholder confidence

6. Results of the preliminary study
18 member states completed the questionnaire
A small minority could identify increased fraud due to online access
But only half monitored fraud or monitored trends
Little evidence of systematic review and improvement of anti-fraud measures
Widespread agreement that sharing intelligence with other jurisdictions would be helpful
Agreement to further research

7. Purpose of the new study
Identify best practice in the detection and prevention of fraud
Ask how open should public access to data be?
Consider whether and how access to data should be restricted
Discuss national data protection issues and laws
Consider freedom of information

8. Common aims WPLA members have agreed that:
There must be strategies in place to combat fraud
There is a need to maintain stakeholders’ confidence in data security
They must share intelligence amongst countries and jurisdictions
They need to compare best practice in detecting and preventing fraud

9. The next step 6th plenary session 18-19 June 2009
Presentation of background note and questionnaire for new survey
Timetable for reporting back to the WPLA Bureau in early 2010

10. Proposed timeline
July 2009 – Following agreement of questionnaire at the plenary session, questionnaire to be sent by HM Land Registry on behalf of the WPLA to member states for completion
September/October 2009 – collate all responses, analyse/check and summarise the results.
November 2009 – Verify results with participating states
Early 2010 – Results to be delivered back to delegates.