Scam Alert – Annual Business Registration
BEWARE of mailings that look like official notices from the State of Connecticut about business registration, annual reports, labor law notices, tax filings, etc.
These notices are sent by companies unaffiliated with any state or government office. They often look very legitimate and will have your business ID number because your business ID number is publicly available. Carefully review all such mailings and check with the state office to confirm the legitimacy of these notices. Call or email the CT Secretary of State at 860-509-6003 or crd@ct.gov to confirm the legitimacy of a mailing.
The above Alert was issued by the Town of Old Saybrook Economic Development Office 1/6/22
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Our Office is Working! Tax Season – 2020, 2021, 2022
Despite the Corona virus, we are still working. The governor has declared us an essential business, but we have modified our practices to keep our clients and ourselves safe.
As we navigate through these unprecedented times, we want to assure you that we are taking every precaution necessary to keep our clients, and ourselves safe. If you plan to drop off or pick up your returns, please call the office at (860) 395-6677. When you are arrive, please knock on the inside office door (not the outside door). If we do not have another client inside we will ask you to come in. If there happens to be another client picking up at that time, we will let you know and ask that you wait outside until they leave to comply with the recommended social distancing of 6 feet.
Together we can get through this difficult time!
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Announced Thursday, January 3, 2019
The Secretary of the State and the Attorney General Warn Connecticut Businesses about “Official” Reporting Scam
HARTFORD – Secretary of the State Denise Merrill and Attorney General George Jepsen are warning businesses across Connecticut about a mailing being sent by “Workplace Compliance Services” purporting to be an official “Annual Report Instruction Form,” alleging that payment is required by Connecticut law. A copy of the form is attached.
“Businesses registered with the state of Connecticut are only required by law to file Annual Reports with our office,” said Secretary Merrill, Connecticut’s chief business registrar. “There is no legal requirement for any business to file the form they received from Workplace Compliance Services, or to pay the inflated fee indicated.”
“This scam targets small businesses and, unfortunately, resurfaces every few years in an attempt to cheat hardworking business owners,” said Attorney General George Jepsen. “Scams like this one try to appear legitimate, but business owners shouldn’t fall for it. Tell your employees to be on the lookout, and whenever in doubt about a suspicious mailing, call the Secretary of State or my office to verify legitimacy before sending any payment.”
This deceptive solicitation has an “official” appearance and references a Connecticut state law. This scam directs the recipient business to send an inflated fee for filing an Annual Report that can be filed directly with the state at ct.gov/annualreport.
Secretary Merrill said, “If you are ever unsure about the legitimacy of a business filing notice you receive, please contact my office at 860-509-6003 or email us at crd@ct.gov. We are ready and eager to help any Connecticut business owner.”
If your business has received the bogus “Annual Report Instruction Form” form, please make a complaint with the Office of the Attorney General at attorney.general@ct.gov, including a copy of the mailing, as an investigation into the mailing in coordination with the U.S. Postal Inspector is underway.
Gabe Rosenberg
Communications Director
Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill
W: 860-509-6255
C: 203-981-5825
gabe.rosenberg@ct.gov
Jaclyn Severance
Director of Communications
Office of the Attorney General
W: 860-808-5324
C: 860-655-3903
jaclyn.severance@ct.gov
Identity Theft
A common scam is for a thief to file tax returns using your name and social security to get at a refund. If you find you are the victim of identity theft, here is what you should do immediately.
1. Contact the IRS:
For individual – wage earners 800-829-0922
For individual – Self Employed/Business owners 800-829-8374
For additional information you may read the following. The important contacts are listed below.
http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Identity-Protection
Publication 4535 Identity Theft Prevention and Victim Assistance
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p4535.pdf
2. Contact the Connecticut Department of Revenue:
SIS unit – special investigation 855-842-1441
3. File Form 14039 Identity Theft Affidavit with the IRS.
This form can be found by typing the form number in the search box when on any IRS web page.
http://www.irs.gov/
4. Contact the Credit Reporting Agencies. By contacting any one of the following you may place a 90 day fraud alert. You only need to contact one of the agencies and they will shared the alert with the other two agencies. You may call or file a fraud alert on-line.
*Equifax 1800 525-6285 www.equifax.com/
*Experian 1888 397-3742 www.experian.com/
*Transunion 1800 680-8289 www.transunion.com/
5. Contact your Bank.
6. Contact Federal Trade Commissions to file a report.
877-438-4338 www.ftc.gov/idtheft
7. Contact your state Attorney General to file a report.
www.NAAG.ORG
8. Contact your local police to file a report.
9. Contact Social Security Administration.
800-772-1213 www.fsa.gov/pub/10064.html
10. Monitor charges on your credit cards.
Most credit card companies allow you to set up notifications for transactions over a specified amount or when your available credit drops to a specified amount.
For victims of identity theft who have previously been in contact with the IRS and have not achieved a resolution, please contact IRS Protection Specialization Unit at 800-908-4490.
If you receive an e-mail claiming to be from the IRS, remember the IRS does NOT initiate contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This includes text messages and social media channels.
