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New scam affecting AU & NZ IP rights holders – be careful not to pay unauthorised third parties or act on their instructions
We are all well aware of scammers and imposters contacting rights holders directly and demanding payment for IP services. It has become common for IP owners to receive unsolicited and ‘misleading invoices’ for office fees, services rendered or rights publication in various registers. More concerning fraudulent behaviour has come to light which deserves your urgent attention.
The Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Board (TTIPAB), the agency that regulates patent and trade mark attorneys practicing in New Zealand and Australia, has warned its members of a very concerning scam which has emerged involving the impersonation of registered IP attorneys to defraud IP rights owners. In this case, IP owners are receiving correspondence pressuring them into filing a trade mark via emails fraudulently purporting to be from a real attorney.
This represents an escalation of previous suspicious activity to impersonating registered IP professionals and undermines one of the traditional safeguards against IP-related scams – checking whether correspondence comes from a registered attorney.
Be vigilant and take care:
The usual red flags apply - unexpected urgency or pressure to act quickly; links to payment portals; email addresses that do not exactly match legitimate domains.
Before engaging in any unexpected correspondence, check the actual email domain carefully not just the display name. Think twice if the correspondence is from an attorney or firm you do not usually work with or relates to an IP right that is not familiar to you. Be very wary if there is a request to change payment details or procedures - if you receive such an email telephone your attorney for confirmation. Even though scammers are getting very sophisticated there may still be errors in the email signature or letterhead that gives cause to pause.
Remind your IP and payment teams to be alert to scammers and imposters posing as IP attorneys, even if letters, emails or text messages appear to come from trusted and registered professionals you may already do business with. Do not pay or reply, open attachments or click links, or provide any further details of your IP rights if the communication feels suspicious. Always verify invoices and correspondence before acting. Use independently obtained contact names and phone numbers from legitimate websites to verify unexpected invoices and correspondence.
