Can I Be an Anonymous SEC Whistleblower?
Blowing the whistle on securities violations comes with significant risks. Fortunately, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recognizes these risks, and allows whistleblowers to disclose their tips without revealing their identities.
Below, we go into further detail about why SEC whistleblowers would want to report tips anonymously, plus the steps you need to take to report information to the SEC while remaining anonymous.
Why Would a Whistleblower Remain Anonymous?
Whistleblowers often want to remain anonymous because of retaliation. Retaliation from a company or business colleague is a very real risk. When a whistleblower discovers information regarding fraudulent behavior, the risk of retaliation increases if their identity is known.
Some of the most common forms of retaliation for whistleblowing include:
- Intimidation
- Demotion
- Termination
- Harassment
- Creation of a hostile work environment
- Threats
- Destruction of the whistleblower’s professional reputation
How to Protect Your Identity
If you are interested in remaining anonymous as you report your tip to the SEC, you can do so by retaining a whistleblower lawyer to represent your case.
Your attorney will then be responsible for both providing the SEC with the information relating to your case and updating you on the status of your whistleblower complaint. From there, your attorney will handle any correspondence between you and the SEC until the investigation has been closed.
Contact a Respected SEC Whistleblower Lawyer
If you are interested in reporting a tip to the SEC but want to do so while protecting your identity, a highly qualified SEC whistleblower lawyer at Meissner Associates may be able to help. You can give our office a call at 1-866-764-3100 or complete the secure contact form at the bottom of this page when you are ready to come in for a confidential consultation.