Owners of trade marks, patents and designs sometimes receive offers or invoices for useless entries in registers and directories. As entries in private registers or directories are legally ineffective, we strongly advise against their use. In Switzerland, only entries in the IP registers maintained by the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property are legally binding.

Also problematic are unrequested offers for expansion and extension of IP rights. Monitor critically who you empower to administer your IP rights and do not authorise any unknown person. Anyone who signs the often official-looking documents without examining them critically, or pays the relevant invoices, could be in for an unpleasant surprise.

These are the bogus service providers known to us at present.