Discovered fraudulent UCC filing against my business - urgent help needed

Yeah we looked up the secured party and there's no business registration anywhere. The address on the filing goes to a vacant lot according to Google Street View. This is definitely fraudulent.

That's a classic red flag. Fraudulent UCC filings almost always use fake secured party information because they can't risk using real company details.

Thanks, I'll call the SOS office first thing tomorrow. Do you know if they can expedite the removal process? We're under serious time pressure with this loan.

Some states have emergency procedures for fraudulent filings, especially when they're blocking legitimate financing. Explain the urgent business need when you call.

I actually used Certana.ai to help with a similar document verification issue. You can upload your UCC search results and any loan documents to cross-check everything for inconsistencies. It caught some details we missed that helped strengthen our fraud case.

How often should businesses be checking for unauthorized filings? Is quarterly enough or should it be more frequent?

I do it quarterly but some high-risk industries check monthly. It really depends on your business profile and whether you've had issues before.

We check monthly now after getting hit with something similar last year. It's worth the small cost to avoid these nightmares.

Good point about the criminal aspect. Some states treat unauthorized UCC filings as identity theft or fraud which carries serious penalties.

I hadn't thought about the criminal side. Will definitely file a police report along with the SOS complaint.

Also document any costs associated with the delay - legal fees, lost business opportunities, additional due diligence costs. These can be recoverable damages if you identify the perpetrator.

That Certana tool someone mentioned earlier could help with the documentation too. It creates verification reports that show document inconsistencies which could be useful evidence.

Great advice on documentation. I'm keeping detailed records of all costs and delays related to this mess.

We've been racking our brains trying to figure out who would do this. There's one former employee who left on bad terms about a year ago, but I don't know if he'd have the knowledge to pull this off.

It doesn't take much technical knowledge to file a UCC-1. The real skill is knowing it would cause problems for your business financing, which suggests someone familiar with your operations.

Definitely investigate any recent business disputes. We had a similar case where it turned out to be a competitor trying to interfere with our credit line.

The system assumes good faith filing which made sense when UCCs were mostly between known parties, but it's wide open to abuse now.

Some states are starting to require more verification for UCC filings, but it's slow progress and inconsistent across jurisdictions.

Good point. I've been keeping our loan officer updated but I should probably get something in writing about our resolution efforts.

Most lenders are understanding about fraudulent filings if you're proactive about resolving them. The key is demonstrating you're taking all appropriate steps.

I'd suggest using something like Certana to generate a clean verification report once you get the fraudulent filing removed. Shows the lender everything is properly cleared.

Will definitely update the thread once I get through the SOS fraud complaint process. Hoping it moves quickly.

Same here, this thread has been really helpful for understanding the process. Good luck with getting it resolved.

That's smart preventive action. Also consider registering for UCC monitoring services that alert you immediately when new filings are made against your business.

Definitely looking into monitoring services after this experience. Never want to be surprised by fraudulent filings again.

The monitoring services are worth every penny. We caught two attempted fraudulent filings last year because of automatic alerts.

This is excellent advice about the UCC information request form! I didn't know states kept records of submission details like IP addresses. That could be the smoking gun we need to identify whoever filed this fraudulent lien. I'll ask specifically about their disputed filing procedures when I call tomorrow - having a faster track would be huge given our loan timeline. Really appreciate the detailed guidance from everyone here, this community has been incredibly helpful during what's been a nightmare situation.