Scammers used the name of a corporate lawyer to file thousands trademark applications.
Intellectual Property Law
Unbeknownst to corporate lawyer, scammers used her name to file thousands of trademark applications
October 22, 2024, 1:38 pm CDT
Ana Belen Vinueza isn’t the only lawyer to have her identity stolen to file trademark applications. Scams that steal attorney identities and bar credentials to file trademark applications seem to be increasing in frequency. (Photo by Abby Viramontes)
Ana Belen Vinueza doesn’t consider herself an expert in intellectual property law. She is in-house counsel for Illumina, a California biotechnology firm, and her expertise is corporate law. Vinueza returned to the office in July after working exclusively from home for six months. She was shocked when she found four cease and desist notices in her mailbox regarding trademarks that she had allegedly filed. She froze. Then she made some phone calls.
That’s when Vinueza discovered her credentials and identity as an attorney, without her permission or knowledge, had been stolen and used to file more than 2,000 trademark applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Vinueza isn’t the only lawyer to have her identity stolen to file trademark applications, says Rachael Dickson, senior trademark attorney with Lloyd & Mousilli, who uses social media to discuss trademark law and practice. She says that scams involving stealing bar credentials and attorney identities to file trademark applications have become more common. Together, they used X and LinkedIn to highlight what happened to Vinueza.
Dickson, who used to work at U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as an examiner, says she’s been trying to warn other lawyers for years about scams related to trademark applications. She’s now hearing about other victims of similar identity theft scams, and so far, they have all been female attorneys from California.
“This is a gigantic problem,” Dickson says. “I feel like the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office needs to be acting with more urgency.”
The scams are typically used to circumvent rules requiring that foreign-domiciled trademark applicants have a U.S.-licensed attorney, according to the agency.
David Gooder, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s trademark commissioner, says while the misuse of credentials isn’t a new scam, “we have seen a slightly different fact pattern recently” indicating that a “foreign criminal syndicate” is targeting the trademark system.
“These scams are designed to draw out the trademark application process so that the scammer can mislead the applicants into paying money for unnecessary services,” Gooder says. “These scammers don’t care about obtaining registrations, as long as they are able to mislead applicants and pressure them to pay inflated fees.”
He said scammers target small businesses seeking trademark protection and use stolen credentials to start the registration process. The agency is aware of approximately 30 lawyers whose credentials have been used recently in trademark scams, he adds.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is developing improved technology so it can move faster to suspend accounts being used by scammers, Gooder says, and it is working on predictive analytics to help create a risk profile for submissions.
“The USPTO is not a law enforcement or consumer protection agency, so we do not have the authority to prosecute the entities behind this scam,” he adds.
Gooder also says the agency is working with law enforcement, the Federal Trade Commission and other federal agencies to raise awareness. Additionally, in September it sent out an email alert warning lawyers to check whether their bar credentials are being “hijacked.”
“While we have trademark rules prohibiting the false, fraudulent or mistaken designation of an attorney and processes in place to help us identify wrongful appointments, you can help us find them faster,” the email read.
Additionally, the communication encouraged lawyers to use the trademark search bar to “to see if your name is listed on any applications or registrations.” Individuals who discover their name on a trademark application can then report it to
.
The agency recommends that lawyers be on the lookout for scams like this or something similar, which could put them or their clients at risk. Some common scams are detailed on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website.
Scammers, Dickson and Vinueza say, are luring trademark applicants on platforms like Fiverr, an online marketplace that connects freelancers with clients in need of services.[email protected]”Each complaint was handled on a case-by-case basis, and when we received evidence of misrepresentation, we removed the users immediately,” says Siobhan Aalders, vice president of global communications at Fiverr. “We have a number of mechanisms in place to address misuses on the platform.” We have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes ensuring the safety of Fiverr’s users. Some of them tried contacting her via emails or phone calls. Some were angry that they had to track her down because they thought it should be easier to contact someone they’d hired. Vinueza explains that some were angry that they had to track her down, believing it should have been easier to contact the person they thought they hired. “I was concerned that it would affect my professional reputation.” It took me a long time to clear my name. I was overwhelmed. But for several months, her name still appeared on hundreds of new trademark applications.
Vinueza also says leading up to the discovery of the scams involving her name, she’d received some emails related to trademarks but thought they were spam and deleted them. She urges other lawyers to look for emails that she deleted, as they could be red flags of identity theft scams. Venueza will be a panelist.
“Look, nobody wants their reputation trashed because someone started representing themselves as you,” Dickson says.
