A German criminal court has found three defendants guilty of fraud for sending misleading invoices to EUIPO customers.

MARQUES, as one of the user associations involved in the EUIPO Anti-Scam Network since the beginning, is grateful to the EUIPO for sharing the following information about a recent case in Germany.

In September 2024, the Munich Court found three defendants guilty of commercial gang fraud for sending misleading invoices to EUIPO customers. Each defendant was sentenced to one year and 10 months of imprisonment, suspended with a three-year probation period.

The Court also ordered the confiscation of around €200,000 – the amount the fraudsters unlawfully obtained – to be used for compensation.

The EUIPO considers this an important legal precedent, as a criminal court in an EU Member State has ruled that the sending of misleading payment requests to IP users is a criminal offence of fraud.

The decision paves the way for current and future investigations and indictments in other jurisdictions.

In December 2020, following numerous reports from customers, the EUIPO filed a criminal complaint for suspected fraud before the competent Public Prosecutor’s Office in Germany.

The fraud scheme consisted of letters sent under the name ‘IP Register UG’, which closely resembled official fee invoices. The letterhead featured the designation "European IP Register", and the subject line highlighted "Data publication from Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM)” – the EUIPO’s former name.

These misleading letters included a "total due" amount, a payment deadline and bank details. Only in small print, barely legible at the bottom of the letters, was the invoice described as a proposal.

Between November 2020 and April 2021, the defendants wrongfully received payments of approximately €200,000 from unsuspecting customers.

In this case, the court convicted the defendants of commercial gang fraud. In a similar case in Sweden in 2017, the defendants were convicted of gross fraud. These cases set legal examples for treating these schemes as criminal fraud.

EUIPO warns IP users to beware of misleading payment requests and not to pay before checking.

To protect customers, EUIPO will continue to publish scam letters and emails in a searchable database of misleading payment requests available on the EUIPO website and further relayed on social media channels.

EUIPO says it strongly advises customers to carefully check any communication they receive in relation to their trade mark or design applications.

If you receive suspicious communications or have any doubts, you can contact CustomerCare@euipo.europa.eu. You can also contact the members of the MARQUES Anti-Fraud Task Force, who are listed here.

Find out more on EUIPO’s website here. This news was also reported on the IPKat blog here.

Picture from EUIPO website