Secretary of State Warns Tennessee Businesses About New “Certificate of Existence” Filing Scam May 24, 2021 at 07:30 am by WGNS Photo: Misleading Letter Copy Secretary of State Tre Hargett is issuing a warning statement to business owners across Tennessee, advising them of a scam that has recently resurfaced targeting businesses with a fake mailer from a company that goes by two names: “Tennessee Certificate Service” and “TN Certificate of Existence Filing Company.” “Our Division of Business Services and myself personally have been hearing multiple complaints from business owners across Tennessee about these misleading mailers,” said Secretary Hargett. “We have seen scams like this before, with similar deceptive language that implies that businesses must have a certificate of existence to complete its formation or to fully operate in the state. This is not the case. Unfortunately, businesses who order a certificate of existence through these scammers may be paying for something that is totally unnecessary – at the very least they will be spending $50 to $150 more than what our office charges for this document when ordered from us directly.”