In December, a BBB accredited business located in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin had its identity stolen by a scam company. The scammers created a web address that was very similar to the real company's web address, and then put the real company's physical address as its own address on this bogus website.

Once unhappy consumers were unable to get ahold of the "customer service" representatives at the fake company, they used the address on the fake company's website to find an alternate telephone number.  That's when the real company began receiving phone calls from the scam company's customers. In essence, the real company's name was "hijacked" by scammers. Fortunately, the real company notified the BBB, who worked to have the bogus website shutdown.

The Wisconsin BBB is warning businesses that this could happen to you! If your company has a website, you should regularly search for your company's name, address and telephone number on the internet. You may be surprised at what you find!

If you discover that your company's name has been hijacked, contact law enforcement officials and the
BBB.

The Wisconsin BBB is warning its accredited business members about a company called OYP (online yellow pages) Group, located in Plattsburgh, New York. The company has more than 500 complaints and an unsatisfactory rating with the Upstate New York BBB office.  According to a Wisconsin BBB accredited business, OYP Group mails to businesses what looks like a collections notice for an advertisement in an online yellow pages-type directory. The only problem is...the company didn't place an ad! If you have a problem with this company, be sure to file a complaint with the BBB.

The Utah BBB in Salt Lake City recently issued a warning about Origin3, a web developer located in Salt Lake City. This company has an unsatisfactory record with the BBB due to unanswered complaints.  It appears that this company was taking money -- between $450 and $4800 -- to develop a company's website, and then not delivering.

Complaints have come from 15 different states, including Wisconsin.  If you want to hire a vendor to provide your company with a product or service, make sure you check out the company's reliability on the Better Business website -- www.wisconsin.bbb.org.