Companies House sets up portal to report stolen identities
Companies House sets up portal to report stolen identities
As Companies House continues with its ‘clean up’, they are now concentrating on a crackdown of identity fraud by launching an online form, for any member of the public to report when a rogue company has used their individual personal details and address without permission.
If People think their identity and address have been stolen by fraudsters they can now use an online form to report the incident, instead of having to report the issue to Companies House via email or by letter.
Companies House have advised that the online form takes around five to ten minutes to complete, as long as all the available information is on hand, including the name and company number of the business that has stolen the details as it appears on the Companies House register.
It is important to clarify if the individual name has been used without permission for any particular role, including directors, company secretary and persons with significant control (PSC).
If an address has been misused, Companies House requires details of when the personal address was first used and evidence of the right to live at the address.
Companies House has a helpline for the new reporting service on 0303 1234 500 which is open Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 6pm.
After submitting the form, Companies House may get in touch asking for more information, or further evidence to support the case.
An email will be sent confirming whether the individual’s details will be taken off the register.
What is the Scale of problem?
In June 2025, Companies House removed 10,000 businesses from the register for ‘illicit activities’, after finding just 30 entities had incorporated 50,000 companies. In a widely publicised crackdown, fraudsters set up fake restaurants misspelling the names of famous chefs including Heston Blumenthal and Yotam Ottolenghi to con Companies House.
More than 118,000 cases of identity fraud were recorded between January and June 2025 by the fraud prevention and it is believed that the amount of fraud has increased due to the use of AI identities and fake profiles.