Scam or spam – how to protect your intellectual property

Scam or spam – how to protect your intellectual property

Have you received an unsolicited email warning you that a third party intends to register your trade mark or domain name? 

With advances in AI, many scam emails now use professional language and branding, making traditional warning signs such as spelling or grammatical errors less reliable.

These types of messages are becoming increasingly common, and often urge recipients to act quickly, usually by payment to “secure” their rights. In most cases, no such payment is necessary, and the threat is entirely fabricated.

In this article we’ll help you to:

• verify the legitimacy of an intellectual property claim; and
• learn how to protect yourself against a scam attempt against your intellectual property.

Common scam formats

Some of the more common examples include:

• Emails from fake law firms

We’ve had reports of emails being received from various sources including Trademark Beacon NZ, NRH Legal Services, Ormand Law, or Tasman Law. These fake law firms claim they’ve been approached by a third party seeking to register your business name as a trade mark. These emails often ask whether you’d like to file a trade mark application for your business name and may link to external websites.

IPONZ has issued a warning about these emails here.

• Messages from domain registration services

These messages are often from email accounts based in China and/or Hong Kong (e.g. from ‘China Registry’ or ‘Hongkong IP Network Ltd’), and state that someone has filed for your trade mark as an internet keyword or domain name. The recipient is then asked whether you’d like to register the domain name or ask you to pay a fee to “protect” your company’s intellectual property.

• Invoices with misleading information

These contain misleading information claiming payment is required for securing ownership of your trade mark. These frequently mimic official documentation and may reference international IP offices.

The EUIPO has published a helpful guide on misleading invoices here.

Red flags

These scams typically share several characteristics:

• Urgency – asking you to respond within a short timeframe (often within 24-48 hours).
• Links to other websites – recommendations that you file a trade mark application through a platform that is not an official website.
• Invoices – providing invoices or documents that falsely claim to be issued by an official entity.
• Online payment requests  – requesting payment via a website that lacks secure protocols or is not affiliated with an official entity.

What to do if you receive a scam email

1. Do not engage – ignore the email, do not respond or click on any links.

2. Verify the authenticity – contact an IP professional to check the communication is legitimate.

3. Report the email – forward the email to the relevant entity (e.g. IPONZ in New Zealand – mail@iponz.govt.nz)

4. Contact your bank – if you’ve made any payments, discuss with your bank how to protect your accounts.

5. Stay informed – visit the Consumer Protection website to learn how to identify and report scams.

By following these steps, you can protect your business from potential scams and ensure your intellectual property rights are secure.

These scams also highlight the importance of a well-managed and up-to-date trade mark portfolio, and it is a good reminder of how important it is to own your trade mark(s). Scammers rely on urgency and confusion so having your registered trade marks and being informed of your current trade mark portfolio makes it easier to spot scam emails.

If you’d like to discuss strengthening your trade mark ownership with one of the team, please contact us at ip@duncancotterill.com.

Special thanks to Partner Katy Rostovitch (née Stove) Senior Associate Rachel Triplow and Solicitor Phoebe Calder for preparing this article.

Disclaimer: The content of this article is general in nature and not intended as a substitute for specific professional advice on any matter and should not be relied upon for that purpose.