Connecticut’s top business and consumer watchdogs are warning firms and residents to avoid an online scam claiming businesses must pay a fee to obtain fictitious proof that they exist.
Attorney General William Tong and Secretary of the State Denise Merrill alerted the public Tuesday to the scam they say involves a mailing from a company calling itself CT Certificate Service.
The mailing suggests that Connecticut businesses must pay a fee of $112.50 to CT Certificate Service in order to obtain copies of their “Connecticut Certificate of Existence,” authorities said.
A “certificate of existence” is not a required document in Connecticut, Merrill said. Moreover, a business that needs one can request them online from the Secretary of the State for a fee.
Tong said his office has launched an inquiry into CT Certificate Service, which lists a West Hartford address.
Tong said businesses that have already paid CT Certificate Service in response to the “2019 CERTIFICATE OF EXISTENCE REQUEST FORM”, should file a complaint with the Office of the Attorney General.
