Complaint process for fraudulent filings

Q1. My address or my name and address is being used for an entity that I’ve never heard of. What can I do about it?

A1. Complete the complaint form (PDF) and our office will review. You may also want to contact the post office and contact a legal advisor.

Q2. Someone filed an unauthorized document for my entity, and I don’t know who they are. What can I do about it?

A2. First, verify that you or someone at your entity did not pay a third party to file a document on your behalf. If so, you need to talk to the third party that filed the document.

If you still don’t know who filed the document, complete and submit the complaint form (PDF) for our office to review. You may also want to contact the post office and contact a legal advisor.

Q3. What types of complaints do you accept?

A3. The following actions involving business documents filed with the Secretary of State’s office are subject to complaint and possible administrative action:

• Including a person’s name on a filed business document without that named person’s consent as any of the following:
  • Registered agent;
  • Individual causing the document to be delivered to the Secretary of State’s office for filing;
  • Person incorporating, forming, or organizing a business entity; or
  • Any other person required by Colorado business laws (Title 7, C.R.S.) to be identified in a business document filed with this office.
• Including an address in a filed business document without the consent of the owner or occupant of that address
• An individual filing a business document without the necessary written consent or authority.

Q4. Can I file a complaint if I know the person who is using my address or name and address?

A4. No. The filing of a complaint is not intended for settling internal disputes between former or current business partners, spouses, family members, friends/acquaintances, co-workers, business competitors, tenants, landlords, etc.

Please seek legal counsel for any legal advice you may require.

Q5. Once I file the complaint, how long will it take to receive a response?

A5. After our office has reviewed the complaint, we will notify you whether we are passing it on to the Attorney General's office.

Due to the current caseload, this process may take several months to complete. We request your patience as both our office and the Attorney General’s office are working diligently to address each complaint.

After reviewing your complaint, the Attorney General could request additional information from you. Or the Attorney General might notify you that the complaint cannot be investigated.

If the Attorney General is able to investigate your complaint and certify your claims, that office will instruct us to take certain actions concerning the filing(s) you referenced in your complaint.

We will contact you if we hear back from the Attorney General's office concerning certification of the claims in your complaint.

Q6. My existing business record was changed without my written consent or authority to do so. What will happen to my record on the Secretary of State’s website if the Attorney General’s office concludes my complaint is correct?

A6. As required by law, this office will (1) mark each specific unauthorized filing on your business’s public History and Documents webpage as “unauthorized” and (2) also indicate on that same webpage that your business was the victim of fraudulent or unauthorized acts. Doing so provides important notice to the public and helps clarify that you did not make the unauthorized changes.

Q7. I am the victim of scam and/or theft by a business. What can your office do?

A7. Unfortunately, this type of complaint is not something our office handles. Our complaint form is only used to:

• Report either that someone's name and/or address has been used without their consent on a business filing, or
• Report that someone’s business record was changed without authorization.

If you believe you are a victim of a business scam or theft, you should immediately contact your local law enforcement agency. You may want to contact the Colorado Attorney General’s Consumer Line at 1-800-222-4444 or the Colorado Office of the Better Business Bureau at 303-758-2100. There is also a link on the Attorney General’s website to file a complaint on a business when they have made an effort to steal your identity and your money: https://coag.gov/file-complaint/

The Secretary of State’s website is where business owners register their business name and file business documents. We are not an enforcement agency, so we do not have the authority to check to see if there are any other complaints, take any for a business or determine if a business’s practices/activities are legal.

Q8. How can I find out if other businesses are using my address and/or name without my consent?

A8. The Colorado Information Marketplace offers a comprehensive online platform where users can search Colorado business entities using a range of customizable filters such as name and/or address.

Follow the instructions below to perform your own search:

1. Go to: https://data.colorado.gov/
2. Click Business
3. Click Business Entities in Colorado
4. Click on the blue box in the top right corner labeled Actions
5. Click Query Data
6. Apply a filter by selecting the Select a column to filter… dropdown at the bottom of the page
   
   Example- To search a specific address:
   1. Select Principaladdress1 or Agentprincipaladdress1 in the dropdown
   2. Select contains
   3. Type in the address
      
       
      
7. Click Apply
8. View Results. Please allow a moment for them to load.

Q9. Who else do I need to contact?

A9. Please also contact the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) by sending an email to reportbusinessfraud@state.co.us

If your complaint involves your existing business being “hijacked” by an unauthorized filing, you can usually "undo" that filing by making corrections. Please contact this office if you need additional assistance.

For more information, see our guide for protecting your business from business identity theft

Q10. What happens after the complaint is deemed fraudulent?

A10. If the Attorney General certifies that a business was fraudulently created, this office may:

• Mark that business to indicate that it is unauthorized or fraudulent;
• Remove any address and, if also included, any name included without authorization; and
• Disable the ability for anyone to make additional filings for that business.

If the Attorney General certifies that an unauthorized filing was made for a existing legitimate business, meaning that business was “hijacked,” this office may:

• Mark that specific filing as unauthorized or fraudulent;
• Remove any address and, if also included, any name included without authorization; and
• Mark the business appropriately to indicate that it was the victim of a fraudulent or unauthorized act.

Please note the following:

• You may continue to get mail for a business depending on that business’s activities.
• This office has no control over or knowledge of that business’s activities.
• This office only revises/adjusts the information in our database upon the notification by the Attorney General.
• If your address is used on any filings made with other government agencies, you will need to contact their office(s) to report any issues.

Q11. How can I stop receiving mail that is directed to the fraudulent business?

A11. We do not have control over what mail is being delivered to your address.

The United States Postal Service provides the following guidance for dealing with unwanted mail (scroll down to Reporting / returning misdelivered mail.)

Q12. If I'm still receiving mail addressed to a business of a previous occupant of my address, am I able to file a complaint?

A12. If the business has simply not updated its information on our website despite your occupancy at this address, we cannot process a complaint as it is the responsibility of the entity to keep its records current.

Q13. Can law enforcement file on behalf of someone?

A13. Yes, law enforcement can file complaints on behalf of complainants. Law enforcement should enter the victim's information in the "Complainant Information" section of the complaint form and the law enforcement’s information should be placed in the "Filer Information" section.

Law enforcement must identify their agency. Example - “John Smith - Boulder County Sheriff’s office”