No public official "vets" deed transfers. If a deed comes in and it's in recordable form, meaning (i) it lists a grantor and grantee, (ii) it contains a property description, and (iii) the grantor's signature is notarized, and the recording fees and taxes are paid then the deed gets recorded. It's a ministerial act. How is a public official supposed to determine if a deed submitted for recording has been forged? Do you expect them to call the owner and ask if they have in fact signed a deed to their house? Do you expect them to pull the prior deed and check to make sure the signatures are the same? All the crook has to do is forge the owner's signature on the deed and apply a fraudulent notary and the deed will get recorded.
It's the purchaser's job to make sure good title is being conveyed. Most purchasers hire title insurance companies to make sure they're getting good title and to provide insurance in case they do not. Protection against a fraudulent deed is one of the primary reasons people get title insurance. Title insurance would protect only the buyer of the home from the crook, though. It would not protect am owner whose home has been stolen.
So what happens to notaries that sign off on bogus deals? Anything? Any way of vetting the notary? I mean they obtain their commissions from the courts based on whether or not they are of good moral character. Does any database of these individuals exist? Could there be some sort of e-verify for notaries?