NEW YORK (VINnews) – New York officials are warning Holocaust survivors and their relatives about a group seeking to help people file claims for Holocaust-era compensation.

The warning follows complaints involving an organization calling itself the “Jewish Holocaust Claims Center.” State officials said they were unable to confirm the group’s identity or determine whether it was legitimate.

The state Department of Financial Services referred the matter to law enforcement and reported the organization’s website to its hosting provider. The site was subsequently taken down.

Officials also referred the case to inspectors general in New York, New Jersey and the U.S. Postal Service.

Gov. Kathy Hochul urged survivors and their families to be especially cautious when approached about Holocaust restitution.

“Scamming and stealing from Holocaust survivors and their families is the lowest of the lows,” Hochul said.

State officials advised survivors to independently verify any organization offering assistance and to avoid providing personal or financial information until its legitimacy has been established.

New York’s Holocaust Claims Processing Office, created in 1997, provides free assistance to Holocaust victims and their heirs seeking to recover assets, including bank accounts, insurance payments and cultural property.

The office says it has helped return more than $184 million in assets to victims’ families and recover 356 cultural objects.