Business ProfileforWI Certificate Service

The following describes a pending government action that has been formally brought by a government agency but has not yet been resolved. We are providing a summary of the government’s allegations, which have not yet been proven.

On October 13, 2022, Attorney General Josh Kaul today announced that the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ), acting on a referral from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP), filed a civil enforcement action against Florida-based Centurion Filing Services, LLC.

“When Wisconsin businesses or consumers are scammed, the scammers must be held accountable,” said AG Kaul. “Thank you to those at DOJ and DATCP whose work led to the filing of this civil enforcement action regarding deceptive mailers that were sent to new businesses.”

According to the complaint, since 2020 Centurion—operating under the name “WI Certificate Service”—has sent tens of thousands of deceptive mailers to newly-created Wisconsin businesses. The mailers, which are designed to look like government invoices, encourage recipients to order a “Certificate of Status” for $72.50. However, businesses can request the same form directly from the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) for $10. The complaint alleges that, as a result of Centurion’s scheme, over 6,000 Wisconsin businesses responded to the illegal mailers.

Secretary Randy Romanski of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) said Centurion’s actions were deceptive. “By posing as a state government service, Centurion defrauded thousands of legitimate businesses for hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he continued. “As Wisconsin’s primary consumer protection agency, DATCP is responsible for defending not only individuals, but also businesses from phony billing schemes, imposter scams, and other fraud. Businesses concerned they may be targets of unlawful solicitations should contact us to verify an invoice is legitimate before sending any money to an unknown entity.”

In March 2021, DFI and the Better Business Bureau issued a warning to businesses about the misleading solicitations. The Wisconsin DOJ’s lawsuit also names as Defendants Centurion’s principals and owners, Dean Marshlack, David Marshlack, and Brian Capobianco. The lawsuit seeks restitution for businesses harmed by the illegal conduct, civil forfeitures, and to bar Centurion from further violations.

Both the Better Business Bureau Serving Wisconsin (BBB) and the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) have heard from several Wisconsin businesses regarding having received solicitation mailers that appear to be invoices from "WI Certificate Service." 

The solicitation is designed to look like it is from the Secretary of State and requests payment of $72.50 for a “Certificate of Status. The solicitation is not being sent by DFI, and the requested payment amount far exceeds the $10 fee DFI charges to obtain an official certificate of status online.

The address used by “WI Certificate Service” is actually a Madison UPS store. The toll-free phone number listed on the mailing is not a working number.

The solicitation is not a valid invoice and businesses are advised not to pay it.

Buried within a paragraph on the mailing is the following sentence which could easily be missed, “WI Certificate is not affiliated with any government or state agency and this is a solicitation for your business.” The address used by “WI Certificate Service” is actually a Madison UPS store and the toll-free phone number on the mailing is not a working number, according to BBB research.

Misleading solicitations that are designed to look like invoices may contain a due date and look similar to a government form. They may even contain a logo or an entity’s ID number and business information, which can be obtained from public records.

BBB reminds businesses to carefully review all solicitations, notices, and websites that offer various business filings, registrations and copy and certification services at prices about the required fees. In addition, check all businesses for free with the Better Business Bureau at bbb.org. Report scams and fraud to BBB Scam Tracker.

To avoid falling victim to a misleading solicitation, BBB recommends businesses:

*Have a solid internal control process for paying invoices. Carefully check invoices against an improved vendor list prior to processing them for payment.
*Train employees to follow internal processes and never pay invoices before vetting them and getting authorization to pay.
*Question any invoice that does not look familiar and does not match an approved vendor list.

Contact DFI with questions regarding business filings, registration, certification or other services via email at [email protected] or call (608) 261-7577.