The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office has been alerted to an attempt to defraud North Carolina businesses by a company with the name “National Companies Register Corporation”.

National Companies Register Corporation is mailing “Important Final Notices” to businesses in an effort to collect money by impersonating the North Carolina Secretary of State’s Office. The demand for money is based on the false premise that businesses are required to register under the US Patriot Act.

The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office is not aware of any attempts to defraud Colorado businesses. However, a similar scam is being perpetrated in Canada and there is reason to believe that other states may be targeted.

You may check the status of a business online at www.sos.state.co.us. Select “Search Business Database” under the Business Center column of the Secretary of State’s homepage. Enter either the entity name or ID number in the appropriate field on the Records Search page. Searching by ID number will display the record’s Summary page. Searching by the entity name will result in a list of names similar to the name searched and will require you to select the proper record. Review the information on the Summary page to confirm that the proper record has been retrieved. The current status for the entity is listed near the middle of the page.

If you receive a notice to register your business or renew your registration in a national database, pursuant to the US Patriot Act, please contact the Business Division immediately by e-mailing us at: sos.business@sos.state.co.us or you may call 303-894-2200 and select option 2. The Business Division may request a copy of the notice, which may be faxed to 303-869-4864. Please keep the original notice, mailing envelope and return envelope for your records.

Thank you for your cooperation.

The Business Division

Revised August 12, 2008 at 10:00 AM