MT SOS warns of mailing scam targeting local businesses

The Montana Secretary of State’s Office is warning businesses about a mailing scam happening across the state in which companies are prompted to pay $77 for a  Certificate of Existence.

Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen said multiple businesses have contacted her office about the same. She has referred the matter to Attorney General Austin Knudsen for potential action, her office said in a press release on Tuesday.

“For many Montanans, their business is their live

lihood, and it’s important we protect that way of living,” Jacobsen said in the release. “Similar mailings have misled businesses in other states, leading to legal action and restitution for the business owners who were deceived, which is why I am sending this matter to Attorney General Knudsen on behalf of the thousands of business owners in Montana.”

The mailing, which is not associated with the Secretary of State’s Office, offers a Certificate of Existence for $77.50. Businesses can obtain a Certificate of Existence directly from the Secretary of State’s Online Filing Portal for $5, the release said.

In November 2020, the Iowa Attorney General’s office sued Florida-based Centurion Filing Services, LLC, under Iowa’s consumer protection laws, resulting in the company agreeing to pay nearly $80,000 in refunds to more than 1,000 Iowa businesses. And Centurion Filing Services operates in Montana under the Assumed Business Name “MT Certificate Service,” the release said.