SEBI cautions public about fake demand letters and other communications in the name of regulator

SEBI cautions public about fake demand letters and other communications in the name of regulator

SEBI has issued an advisory and cautioned the public about fake notices being issued in the name of the regulator. In its press release, the market regulator said, "It has come to the notice of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) that certain individuals have received communication wherein sender falsely claims to be an official of SEBI using letter head, logo and seal of SEBI."

SEBI's press release cited instances where the sender issued notices through social media platforms, asking for payment of fine to prevent SEBI from acting against the recipient. Such senders forged sale certificate to show that they were buyer of PACL properties as well as fake certificate of use of third-party vendor account.

SEBI has urged the public to exercise caution and verify the authenticity of any communication that they might deem to have received from the organization. SEBI has asked public to verify the orders passed by it, with a unique reference number which can be cross checked at SEBI's website. It also advised public to verify the unique document identification number on recovery certificates, show cause notices, summons etc. The market regulator has a SEBI-document number verification system where such communication can be verified.

It further added that all official communications are issued from SEBI's domain email IDs and also the name, email id and other details of SEBI officials are available on its website which can be verified. SEBI has advised investors to be vigilant while dealing with communication/senders demanding information or payment on behalf of the market regulator.