Special Report: How to spot a clone
Sue Weekes
30 November 2021

The FCSA provided Recruiter magazine with the following guide to spotting a clone.
It says these are the key clues to look out for:
- lack of any other presence. Cloners need to keep below the radar while creating just enough legitimacy to convince agencies or contractors. They also need to get in quickly, steal the money and run
- no website presence
- no presence on social media
- no heritage on Companies House. Clones are typically very infant with no accounts
- the same old names. It is often the same directors who set up multiple clone companies in a very short space of time, often from the same address which is often just an address of a residential property, and often multiple occupancy
- those directors are often based outside the UK. Currently, the trend is towards a handful of individuals who are based in India
- a clone company will differ only slightly in name from the legitimate one. It might be just one letter or number or an added word to the company title, for example, ABC Ltd becomes ABC1 Ltd or ABC Pay becomes ABC Paye.
Image credit | Shutterstock
