Phony state websites shut down by Attorney General Letitia James, who fines their creator
State Attorney General Letitia James shown last year. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
Two websites that "impersonated" New York Department of State sites, using an official seal and logo but charging "much higher prices" for services than the real sites, have been shut down and their creator and his company fined, New York State Attorney General Letitia James announced Wednesday.
In a statement, James said one of the sites created by Thomas Romano and his company, Steamin' Weenie, LLC, charged $135 for a certified copy or a certificate of incorporation — a document that cost just $10 from the official state site.
The statement said, "The NYSDOS helps individuals file paperwork for their businesses, such as corporate registry documents, or start a limited liability company (LLC)," adding that the sites created by Steamin' Weenie offered "no disclosures" they were operated by a private third-party that agreed to file documents for users.
In addition to shutting down the sites, which mimicked the real ones to lure unsuspecting users, James said her office secured $44,387 in penalties from Romano and his company.
“Misleading consumers is not a smart business plan, it’s unethical and illegal,” James said in her statement. “These websites deceived hardworking New Yorkers who were simply trying to open up their own business and file the necessary paperwork to do so. Scam artists may think they are savvy, but breaking state laws and conning New Yorkers will get you into hot water with my office. I encourage everyone to be vigilant and ensure the websites they are visiting to conduct government business are legitimate.”
James said the NYSDOS alerted her office of the fraudulent websites, which she said adopted "significant elements" of the official website from 2021 and copied "graphical elements."
That included use of a logo "substantially similar" to one displayed on the official website, a modified version of the state seal, and a customer support phone number listed with an Albany area code — though James said the website operator lived downstate.
James said the website also referred to itself as the Corporation Services Division, designed to mimic the NYSDOS’ Division of Corporations.
Consumers who suspect a website is trying to pass as an official government resource can file an online complaint with the attorney general's Bureau of Internet and Technology at https://ag.ny.gov/file-complaint.
John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”
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