FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 21, 2014
Contact: Raphaelle A. Silver
(207) 207.626.8404

Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap Launches Innovative New Service to Combat Corporate Fraud

Maine business owners and registered agents have a new tool to monitor corporate filings.

 

AUGUSTA, Maine – February 21, 2014 - The Maine Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions, a division of the Department of Secretary of State, becomes just the second state agency in the nation to introduce an Online Corporate Fraud Monitoring service.

Maine business owners and registered agents have now been provided with the ability to automatically be notified of any filing completed against their business entities.

Governor Paul R. LePage applauded the service as an important tool for the business community. “This service provides everyone, from a large corporation to the average small business owner, with a chance to be proactive in their fight against individuals who intend to harm others and seek profit by committing fraudulent filings,” said the Governor. “Users are immediately notified of any new filings, giving them a chance to quickly react to any unauthorized changes and take defensive steps, like freezing credit lines and contacting credit bureaus.”

Users who sign up for the service will create an online profile that will keep track of the business entities they want monitored. This profile will allow users to review, add, or delete entities from their monitoring account, to review add, delete or edit email addresses on file for notifications, and to view a list of filings or changes completed against the entity/entities over the past one year.

A $35 annual charge will be assessed for each entity listed in the profile and customers can conveniently pay using a Visa, Mastercard or Discover debit/credit card or their InforME Subscriber Account.

If a new filing is submitted for an entity being monitored through the online service, the customer will receive an email notification immediately letting them know.

There are nearly 80,000 registered entities in the State of Maine, stated Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap. While small business owners and corporations may be vigilant in protecting their entities and investments, it can be difficult to always stay alert and informed of outside risks. This will eliminate some of that risk.

The online service was developed at no cost to Maine taxpayers and was created by the Maine Secretary of State, Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions, in partnership with the state’s e-government portal provider, InforME. Corporate Fraud Monitoring adds to the suite of corporate services available through the CEC and Maine.gov, which continues to be the premiere resource for online business information and services.

For more information regarding this service, please visit the website at https://www1.maine.gov/online/sos/cfm.

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About Maine.gov Maine.gov is the official Web portal of the state of Maine.  Maine.gov is a service of InforME, a collaborative effort between the state of Maine and Maine Information Network, LLC.