1 week Ago
NORTH ADAMS — If you have to pay a bill with the City of North Adams, make sure to double-check the URL. You might have been directed to Doxo, a bogus bill pay website targeting residents. Doxo has no affiliation with North Adams and is posing as a legitimate payment processor, the city and its police department said in a joint statement.
UniBank/UniPay is the only authorized bill processor for the city. In April 2024, the Federal Trade Commission took legal action against the company, accusing it of purchasing search engine ads to impersonate billers in order to "mislead consumers about millions of dollars in junk fees." Doxo has denied those claims in court.
On Saturday, The Eagle found that Doxo was the third search result on Google for "North Adams bill pay" and "[email protected]," though it appears that the company did not pay for either result.
"Doxo’s landing pages prominently feature the biller’s company name and sometimes even their logo, even though Doxo generally does not have a formal relationship with the biller," the FTC says. Less than 2 percent of the companies in Doxo's network authorize the company to accept payments on its behalf, according to the commission. Doxo's landing page for North Adams featured legitimate contact info for the city, listing City Hall numbers under "customer support," as well as a FAQ section.
The page claims that Doxo is "not an affiliate" of North Adams and says that the city was added to its directory by a user. Doxo did not immediately respond to The Eagle's inquiry for comment and more information on Saturday. According to city officials, trying to pay your North Adams bills through Doxo will result in a processing error in which users will be asked to resubmit payment.
The company promises a refund that will never come, city officials say, and residents will likely be charged twice. The city also discourages sharing any personal or financial information with Doxo. The FTC's suit against Doxo remains pending in the U.
S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. Residents are encouraged to contact the city Treasurer's Office at 413-662-3044 or the North Adams Police Department at 413-664-4944 Ext.
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