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Celebrity chefs targeted in identity cloning scam

Heston Blumenthal and Yotam Ottolenghi among those affected by new identity fraud, BBC finds.

Goods are then delivered in transit and invoices left unpaid In many cases, "clone restaurants" have been registered with very similar names to real businesses, usually with a slight misspelling. "There's been this rise of identity theft, and the requirement for all of us to provide bills, passports or a driving licence, even if you want to get a library ticket from your local council," Mr Barrow says. Mr Ottolenghi's company told the BBC: "Anyone who infringes our intellectual property or attempts to cause confusion with our brand or profit from our reputation, will have robust action taken against them."

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