Fraud and Consumer Alerts

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts issues this fraud alert to prevent Texans from being defrauded by criminals who are using a Transfer XL response email message.

Criminals posing as the agency or Comptroller’s office employees are sending emails to individuals and businesses asking that they download a file via Transfer XL. The hyperlinks in the email lead to a website classified as malicious. Opening this website will put your personal information at risk of being stolen and/or your computer being infected with a virus.

If you receive such an email (view PDF example of Transfer XL response email), please take the following actions immediately:

• Do not respond to the email.
• Block the sender of the email.
• Change your password to any of your accounts by updating your password in the Texas Statewide HUB System.
• Update your antivirus software and run a diagnostic.

If you have already opened the email and clicked on a hyperlink, report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and follow its instructions on how to avoid subsequent identity theft.

The Statewide HUB Program has been notified that some vendors have received phishing emails that claim to be from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. The fraudulent email asserts that their “Certification Application is Incomplete.” See sample Certification Application Incomplete email (3/11/25, PDF).

This email did not originate from the Comptroller's office and is not legitimate agency correspondence. Do not click any links. Delete the email. If you clicked on a hyperlink in this malicious email, please immediately run an anti-malware scan, contact your IT provider and update your password in the Texas Statewide HUB System. You can report the incident to the Office of the Texas Attorney General at 800-621-0508. Victims also can seek assistance from the Federal Trade Commission.

Criminals impersonating the Comptroller’s office are sending emails to state vendors demanding they renew their vendor membership status within 24 hours, claiming vendors’ accounts will be suspended if the recipients do not take action.

Please do not click on the hyperlink in the email or make any contact with the sender. Then destroy the email. Taking these actions can foil criminals’ attempts to collect log-on credentials, financial and other business information.

If you have clicked the hyperlink, please immediately contact the Comptroller’s office Centralized Master Bidders List (CMBL) to reset your state vendor ID and password. See sample CMBL email (12/24, PDF).

The Comptroller’s office encourages taxpayers to report all suspected fraud, theft, waste, abuse and scams concerning the agency by contacting stop.spoofing@cpa.texas.gov, or the Texas Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-621-0508.

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts issues this fraud alert to prevent Texans from being defrauded by criminals who are using a DocuSign response email message.

Criminals posing as the agency or Comptroller’s office employees are sending emails to individuals and businesses asking that they review and sign a document via DocuSign. The hyperlinks in the email may steal your personal information and/or DocuSign credentials and inject a virus into your computer.

See sample DocuSign scam email (PDF).

If you receive such an email (view example), please take the following actions immediately:

• Forward the entire email as an attachment to security@docusign.com.
• Do not respond to the email.
• Block the sender of the email.
• Change your password to any account (e.g., Comptroller’s office electronic systems, DocuSign) identified in the email.
• Update your antivirus software and run a diagnostic.
• If you have already opened the email and clicked on a hyperlink, report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and follow its instructions on how to avoid subsequent identity theft.

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts issues this fraud alert to prevent Texans from being defrauded by criminals appearing to be providing state government services concerning the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). This fraudulent activity is known as the Texas UCC Statement Services Scam.

Criminals impersonating a state government agency have been mailing a solicitation to Texas businesses stating that they must immediately pay $90 to obtain and file a delinquent UCC form within a short period. Texas businesses are unlikely to ever file the form, but if they do, the form may be ordered directly from the Texas Secretary of State for a small fee.

The Comptroller’s office encourages taxpayers to report all suspected fraud, theft, waste, abuse and scams to stop.spoofing@cpa.texas.gov. Taxpayers may also contact the Texas Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division by calling 800-621-0508.

The Comptroller’s office has received reports that Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) members have received a phishing email purporting to come from the Texas Comptroller, from an email domain that is not associated with our agency.

See sample HUB Confirmation letter (PDF).

This email directs recipients to download an attachment and click on a hyperlink to confirm their business name is included within a list of “approved Active HUBS.” Do not click any link. Instead, report it to our office.

This email did not originate from our office. We believe the link in the attachment is malicious, is designed to spread malware, and is designed allow the intruder to exploit loopholes and steal sensitive information from the recipient.

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is warning citizens that criminals are sending emails impersonating the agency’s Open Records Division, claiming they have committed a Code violation. Do not click any links in these communications. To cause you to react and click onto the links, these fraudulent emails use the subject line: Code Violation Notice ref.:: 3364541.PDF.

See sample Comptroller Impersonation Fraud letter (PDF).

If you click the link, destructive malware is installed onto your computer or electronic device. The malware then steals your sensitive data.

If you or anyone you know receives an email or any other communication like this, again, do not click any link. Instead, report it to our office.

Some taxpayers have received fraudulent letters claiming the state of Texas will seize their assets and property for unpaid taxes unless payment is made within seven days. These illegitimate letters did not originate from the Comptroller’s office.

For years, criminals have used aggressive and threatening scam faxes, letters and phone calls impersonating state agencies. The criminals demand immediate payment, often via a specific payment method, and threaten to seize assets and property or significantly increase the liability if you fail to pay or provide sensitive personal information.

See sample Impersonating State letter (PDF).

Be incredibly wary whenever you receive unexpected messages like these, as they can be a trap. The criminals’ threats are designed to get you to react by calling the criminals’ phone number or clicking on a fake link to solve the problem. The consequences can be catastrophic. Not only can you lose your money, but if you click on links in scam emails or texts, you also could become a victim of identity theft or have malware installed on your phone or computer.

If you receive an unexpected message of this type, do not call the phone number or use the website or link provided in the letter, email or text. Most importantly, do not give the sender personal information or money. Instead, please email us at stop.spoofing@cpa.texas.gov or call the Comptroller’s Collection Team at 800-252-8880.

Texas business owners are reporting they have received an unlawful, unsolicited email (view email impersonation scheme here (PDF)) purporting to be from Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar. These illegitimate emails, which offer a fictious business opportunity, did not originate from the Comptroller's office.

In them, the Comptroller’s title is incorrect, and the agency cited as offering the opportunity does not exist. The offering email comes from the domain “zohosign.com,” while the email address provided for queries concerning the fraudulent offer misspells the Comptroller’s name and contains a different commercial address from the domain “outlook.com.” An authentic email from the Comptroller’s office will give the user’s full name with the agency’s domain name that ends with .gov.

If you suspect any correspondence from our agency is fraudulent, please notify us by emailing stop.spoofing@cpa.texas.gov.

HUB members are reporting that they have received a phishing email from numerous individuals falsely representing official correspondence from the Statewide Procurement Division. The fraudulent email did not originate from the Comptroller's office and is not legitimate correspondence. The malicious email is designed to lure recipients into clicking on the provided link to spread malware, steal login credentials or trick people into sharing personal and financial information. Some fraudsters are following up with a telephone call. If you receive such an email, please contact us at these addresses: HUB Members: StatewideHUBProgram@cpa.texas.gov; CMBL members: e.cmbl@cpa.texas.gov.