A quick warning to all those with investment interests in South Africa. Two recent developments mean that investors need to ask their local advisors to audit the company names register to check a.) if their identity has not been stolen through fraudulent changes to directors of local companies by alleged corrupt officials and b.) that their brand has not been diluted or used to form so-called "counterfeit companies" which are then used for a variety of criminal activities. Afro-IP has produced a summary of the worrying developments here. This blogger received further information late yesterday from an Afro-IP subscriber that CIPRO (the RSA Company and Registration Office) is taking the situation very seriously and is doing a thorough internal investigation. Let's hope so.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
National IP Office in RSA implicated in identity theft
A quick warning to all those with investment interests in South Africa. Two recent developments mean that investors need to ask their local advisors to audit the company names register to check a.) if their identity has not been stolen through fraudulent changes to directors of local companies by alleged corrupt officials and b.) that their brand has not been diluted or used to form so-called "counterfeit companies" which are then used for a variety of criminal activities. Afro-IP has produced a summary of the worrying developments here. This blogger received further information late yesterday from an Afro-IP subscriber that CIPRO (the RSA Company and Registration Office) is taking the situation very seriously and is doing a thorough internal investigation. Let's hope so.
