This time the company responsible calls itself “Nieuwe Bedrijvengids BVBA,” and is currently sending out mailings identical to those of a previous scammer, Belga Marketing BVBA.

The pitch is the same: the target business receives a mock-up of their “free” entry in the business guide, in order to approve the details, which normally contain one deliberate mistake.

The form is actually an order form, with the details hidden in the small print, for expensive advertising in a business guide. Business owners who take advantage of the “free” offer find themselves facing a bill for thousands of euros for advertising they did not want. The guides, if they ever appear at all, are of poor quality and limited circulation.

Unizo has already started legal action against the practice, which has been operated many times in the past with only the names changing. The organisation advises any business who receives such an offer not to correct the details contained therein, and not to return the form to the sender.