Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo is alerting New York business owners of a scam targeting corporations. Businesses are receiving misleading notifications through the mail advising them of their corporate responsibilities and requesting a processing fee for providing a service that they are led to believe is required by state law. The document, titled “2014 Annual Corporate Minutes,” selectively quotes sections of New York’s business corporation law regarding a corporation’s obligations to hold annual corporate meetings and maintain corporate records. The official-looking document asks the recipient to send $125 to the “Dept. of Business and Compliance” to fulfill their corporate obligations under New York law.
Businesses that have received these offers should ignore the solicitation and report fraudulent activity to the Department of State’s Division of Consumer Protection at 518-474-8583 or www.dos.gov/consumerprotection.