Rise of Trademark Phishing Scams

There has been a reported surge in trademark phishing scams.

The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (“CIPO”) issued a statement warning of an email phishing scam targeting members of the public by individuals impersonating intellectual property attorneys and pressuring business owners to take immediate action against alleged trademark infringement.

If you are a trademark holder we urge you to be vigilant and suspicious of any unexpected emails, especially those requesting payment.

Red Flags to Look Out For

The College of Patent Agents and Trademarks Agents issued a statement warning that trademark holders should be suspicious of emails which:

• Come from an unknown source;
• Reference an urgent trademark infringement;
• Include your personal information such as your name or business name;
• Urge you to email or call the sender promptly; and/or
• Outline extremely negative consequences if you don’t act fast.

How to Tell if it is Legitimate

CIPO has directed that all legitimate CIPO correspondence will include the following identifiers:

• Mail notices from CIPO will come from this address: 50 Victoria St., Gatineau, QC, K1A 0C9;
• Emails from CIPO will have the "@ised-isde.gc.ca" domain name; and
• Notices about international applications under the Madrid Protocol would come from the World Intellectual Property Organization address or from the domain "@wipo.int".

Uncertain if it is Legitimate?

If you are suspicious of something you received related to a fee payment, service offer, renewal/maintenance fee or similar request, please contact a member of our Intellectual Property Group for guidance.