Trademarks are often an integral part of a business. They provide brand recognition, allowing customers to build trust and loyalty to the company. They protect the company’s reputation. Trademarks also require registration, maintenance, and enforcement of rights in order to keep the trademark. These requirements make it easy for scammers to try to steal money, information, or even the rights associated with a trademark from trademark owners. Trademark owners must be alert to the potential scams that they may face, particularly trademark renewal scams. If you believe you have received communications from a scammer, or have been scammed, a knowledgeable Chicago trademark attorney with Sullivan & Carter, LLP, may be able to assist you. Call (929) 724-7529 to learn more about your legal rights and options.

What Is the Trademark Renewal Scam?

There are many different scams associated with trademarks. The trademark renewal scam relies on trademark owners not being familiar with the timeline or process for trademark renewals. With this scam, the scammer sends an official-looking renewal notice via either physical mail or email, claiming that the trademark owner’s registration is about to expire or that the trademark is at risk of abandonment. The communication also includes a request for payment, ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, and makes reassuring promises to handle the renewal quickly and seamlessly.

Unfortunately, because it is a scam, once the trademark owner pays the requested amount, the scammer provides no actual service. This scam relies on the victim feeling a sense of urgency and fear of losing the legal protections of having their trademark registered. This sense of urgency and fear leads to the trademark owner acting without thinking through their actions or confirming the information in the communication is legitimate.

Strategies To Avoid Being a Victim

There are several things trademark owners can do to avoid falling victim to these scams. The first is to verify the sender of the communication. If it is not a legitimate trademark service provider or the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), it is not a legitimate communication. When the communication comes by email, trademark owners should hover over links and the email address and make sure that domain names and email addresses match the information that pops up. Do not make hasty decisions, particularly regarding making payments, until the legitimacy of the communication is confirmed.

Trademark owners should also consider consulting a trademark attorney to confirm the legitimacy of the communication and whether renewal is needed at this time. Another step trademark owners can take to avoid falling for this scam is understanding the process of renewing a trademark, including when to renew, and the forms and fees involved. The USPTO requires trademark renewal, or the filing of maintenance documents, between the fifth and sixth years after registration, between the ninth and tenth years after registration, and then every ten years. Trademark owners can check the official source, the USPTO’s Trademark Status and Document Retrieval (TSDR), for specific information about their trademark’s registration and renewal.

Other Scams To Be Wary About

Trademark owners should also be alert for phishing scams. These scams may or may not specifically relate to trademark renewal, but they will be seeking the same result: gaining the victim’s personal information. Phishing scams are deceptive emails or messages that are meant to trick the receiver into revealing private information such as login credentials, payment details, or other personal information. They often appear legitimate, claiming the trademark owner’s registration requires immediate attention and include links or attachments that allegedly lead to official forms but actually lead to fraudulent websites that steal the victim’s information.

Individuals and businesses can avoid these scams by verifying the sender. One method of verification is to hover over links and email addresses and confirm that the information that shows in the preview matches the official URL of the website or that the email address in the preview matches the email address shown in the email. Visiting the official website by typing in their URL directly is recommended to avoid clicking on any fraudulent links. Additional ways to avoid being scammed include looking at the spelling and grammar used, as there will often be many misspelled words and poor grammar, and avoiding clicking on suspicious links or opening attachments. Consulting an attorney with Sullivan & Carter, LLP may also help trademark owners avoid being scammed.

Other Tips To Avoid Trademark Scams

While trademark renewal scams and phishing scams are ones that trademark owners might face after they register a trademark, there are other scams they may face even before registration. Other tips that can help individuals and businesses avoid being scammed include:

• Be Wary of Low-Cost Services: The low cost of these services can be very tempting, but often they will pressure the individual or business to purchase unnecessary services for exorbitant fees or offer fake services in exchange for personal information that they then use to continue to pressure people into more unnecessary services at inflated prices.
• Check Attorney Credentials: Hiring an attorney is the most recommended way to register and maintain a trademark. However, the USPTO clearly states that attorneys must be in good standing of the bar of the highest court of any state or territory of the United States to represent clients in any USPTO proceedings. Asking for and being given licensing credentials, combined with effective, timely communication and a transparent pricing structure are all good indications that the attorney is legitimate.
• Look for Red Flags: Scam communications can be very effective, complete with official USPTO letterhead, the seal on gold foil, and even the real names of forms, notices, and employees. Indications the communication is a scam include threats that a third party will register a mark that conflicts with the victim’s if the victim does not register their trademark immediately, claims that a pending or abandoned application has an issue that allows a third party to take over the trademark, an insistence that the trademark must be renewed well before the date it should be renewed, or demands for responses or payments within 24-72 hours
• Never Provide Payment Information: There are fees associated with registering and maintaining a trademark. However, these fees are typically paid through the USPTO system. USPTO employees will never ask for payment information or direct payments. Whether received in a letter or email or asked over the phone, if the individual claims to be a USPTO employee and is asking for payment information, it is likely a scam.

What To Do If You Do Get Scammed

Unfortunately, even when an individual is alert and knows what signs to look for, they can still fall victim to a scammer. Some scammers are very good at impersonating official offices and creating fraudulent documents or websites that are almost indistinguishable from the official ones. Therefore, individuals and businesses should also know what to do if they do happen to get scammed. There are three simple steps that should be taken immediately once the individual or business realizes they have been scammed:

• Report It To Your Bank: If any financial information was provided, or if any of the information provided would give the scammer access to financial accounts or information (such as login credentials used on both the bank’s website and another website, account numbers, etc.), report the scam to the bank. This allows the bank to take steps to attempt to secure the individual or business’s accounts, watch for fraudulent activity, and be aware of the scam to help protect other customers.
• Submit a Fraud Complaint: Whether the scam is over the phone or through physical mail or email, it can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
• Contact the Local Authorities: Scams should also be reported to the local Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) office and the local attorney general.

How Can an Experienced Trademark Attorney Assist You Avoid Trademark Renewal Scams?

Scams are becoming more sophisticated every day. Scammers will try almost anything to get the information or money they are seeking from their potential victims. Knowledgeable trademark attorneys can help their clients avoid these scams by verifying when a trademark is due for renewal, confirming the sender’s information, and informing their clients about how the trademark registration and renewal process works. Additionally, they can assist their clients with reporting scams and protecting their personal information and their finances if they have fallen victim to a scam. If you have been scammed, received a communication that you believe may be a scam, or have other questions about trademark renewal, one of our skilled Chicago trademark attorneys may be able to assist you. Call Sullivan & Carter, LLP at (929) 724-7529 to schedule a consultation and review your case.