LARA Warns Of Scams Impersonating LARA

At the end of last month, the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) sent out an eMail warning licensees and others using LARA services of potential scam artists impersonating LARA and its officials:

Beware of Scams Impersonating LARA

Be aware of potential scam artists impersonating LARA and other government officials!

The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) strives to keep your licensing and personal information safe.

It’s important to understand how and when LARA communicates with you. To help you determine when a contact is officially from LARA and steps you can take to reduce the risk of falling for a scam, please keep in mind the following:

• Official, mailed communications from LARA will be on LARA letterhead. Official, emailed communications will typically come from the “@michigan.gov” domain.
• If you are concerned that a communication (including a phone call or text) is not from a LARA official, you may request verification by contacting LARA by a means listed on https://www.michigan.gov/lara/about/contact-us .
• Be suspicious of communications indicating that you must take immediate action to provide payment or other sensitive information to avoid license suspensions or other official actions by LARA. When in doubt, verify the communication.
• Authorized credit-card transactions are only accepted online and through a payment portal or database linked from a State of Michigan website. Do not give your credit-card or other financial information to anyone over the phone, through email or mail, via text message, or by any other means.Authorized payment by check should only be made out to the State of Michigan and mailed to an official State of Michigan address that can be verified online at https://www.michigan.gov/lara/about/contact-us . Do not make out a check to an individual or entity other than the State of Michigan.
• Authorized cash payments can be made by appointment at LARA’s official cashier’s location at 2407 North Grand River Ave, Lansing, MI 48906. Customers can make appointments by clicking the appropriate links: Corporation, Securities, and Commercial Licensing or other LARA customers.  Cash payments should never be made in person outside an official cashier’s location, and it is not recommended to send cash by mail—even if it is to an official LARA address. 
• Be cautious of any unsolicited requests for any personal information.
• Be suspicious of any unexpected emails or links to websites. If your personal information is compromised, it may be used in other fraud schemes.
• Do not respond to or open hyperlinks in unverified emails or text messages requesting to validate your personal data.
• Do not share your licensing, personal, or financial information over the telephone, email, or via text message with an alleged representative of LARA without first verifying the authenticity of the communication.
• If you suspect fraud, report it immediately to LARA-Transparency-Liaison@Michigan.gov.

Should you have specific questions regarding this email communication or would like to report a possible scam related to LARA, please contact us at LARA-Transparency-Liaison@Michigan.gov or 517-335-9700.

If you would like to learn more about recognizing and protecting yourself from a scam, please visit the Michigan Department of Attorney General Consumer Protection at https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/scams .