Alerts
Warning: Emails misusing the name of Tania Bedi and Latham & Watkins (London) LLP
17 July 2024
Numerous instances misusing the name Tania Bedi and Latham & Watkins (London) LLP.
What is the scam?
The SRA has been advised that on numerous separate occasions, the identity of Tania Bedi has been misused in email correspondence to targeted companies in the UK, US, Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, and Germany.
These emails requested payment relating to 'overdue bill 1099325' and provided bank details for remittance which were not those of the genuine firm of solicitors (see below).
The email addresses used are:
- Tania-Bedi@LathamWatkinsLaw.onmicrosoft.com
- bedi@lathamwakins.space
- taniabedi@lathamwatkins.space
- TaniaBedi@LathamWatkinsAdvisory.onmicrosoft.com
- tania@LathamWatkinsAdvisory152.onmicrosoft.com
- office@net-cloud.space
- Tania-Bedi@LathamWatkinsLegalAdvisors.onmicrosoft.com
- taniabedi@lathamwatkinslegal.uk
- tania@lathamwatkinslegalservice.onmicrosoft.com
The following subdomains being used are:
- onmicrosoft.com
- onmicrosoft.com
- onmicrosoft.com
The invoices seen by the SRA bear the name, address, and website of the genuine firm of solicitors (see below).
Any business or transactions through the above email addresses is not undertaken by an individual or firm authorised and regulated by the SRA.
Is there a genuine firm or person?
The SRA authorises and regulates a genuine firm of solicitors called Latham & Watkins (London) LLP which has a head office in London and website address of www.lw.com. Emails from the genuine firm use the domain @lw.com.
The SRA also authorises and regulates Tania Bedi, who is a Partner at the genuine firm of Latham & Watkins (London) LLP. Her genuine email address is tania.bedi@lw.com.
The genuine firm has confirmed that neither it, nor the genuine Tania Bedi have any connection to the emails referred to in the above alert.
What should I do?
When a firm's or individual's identity has been copied exactly (or cloned), due diligence is necessary. If you receive correspondence claiming to be from the above firm(s) or individual(s), or information of a similar nature to that described, you should conduct your own due diligence by checking the authenticity of the correspondence by contacting the law firm directly by reliable and established means. You can contact the SRA to find out if individuals or firms are regulated and authorised by the SRA and verify an individual's or firm's practising details. Other verification methods, such as checking public records (e.g. telephone directories and company records) may be required in other circumstances.