Sunday, March 07, 2010

Stop! Thief!

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I am so disappointed!
I had to remove all the pictures of my pressed flower cards because they were being stolen and used by Polyvore.
I found them here and here.
If they had just emailed me and asked to use them, I probably wouldn't have had a problem with it, but to just rip them off, use them in a collage and post them up for thousands of people to use as clip art just makes me so . . . PISSED!!

The hoops I have to jump through to get them removed aren't worth it. Check this out:

To file a copyright infringement notification with us, you will need to send a written communication that includes substantially the following (please consult your legal counsel or see Section 512(c)(3) of the Copyright Act to confirm these requirements):

  1. Identify in sufficient detail the copyrighted work that you believe has been infringed upon.
  2. Identify the material that you claim is infringing the copyrighted work listed in item. You must include URLs for the material you want taken down.
  3. Provide your full name, address, telephone number, and email address, so that Polyvore can contact you.
  4. Include the following statement: "I have a good faith belief that use of the copyrighted materials described above as allegedly infringing is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law."
  5. Include the following statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed."
  6. Sign the notice, proving that you are a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
Really!? ARGGHH!
Ok, I'm going to go plant something and cool off.
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13 comments:

Kyna said...

I hate how everything can be stolen so easily on the internet. :( I'm sorry that you've been a victim of theft. I'd be angry too....

Tina said...

Hey there, Kyna,
thanks for stopping by!
Thanks for the sympathy. Yes, theft is a big problem. I've heard from quite a few bloggers that it is the main reason they don't post a lot of pictures that they'd like to. How sad is that? Unfortunately, we all lose :(

Amy said...

I would be mad and upset, too! It is terrible that they just used them without your consent.
I would love to see your cards on your blog. They are very pretty!

Amy said...

It is a shame that you had to remove them from your own blog.

Deborah Verhoeven said...

I would follow the instructions and get them to take them down. They want you to give up. Probably most things on their site has been stolen from somewhere. Sorry they did this to you :-(

Jean Campbell said...

As long as those who have had material stolen find filling out a form too much trouble, the scrapers will continue to steal content.

It's just a form; copy and paste. Go gettum!

Jean Campbell said...

Oh, yeah, don't put you home address and phone number in the complaint. Refer them to your attorney.

Tina said...

Amy, thanks for popping by!
Thanks! I don't know why people do things like this...

Deborah, thanks for dropping in!
Thanks, and I'm betting you're right - it looks like they're swiping from pretty much anywhere they'd like.

NellJean, thanks for dropping by!
It's not just a form they want you to fill out (which I did) - it's a letter written by specific law-eese rules and mailed. As for referring to an attorney, uh, who has money for that? But, thanks for the advice, never-the-less :)

Curbstone Valley Farm said...

You don't need an attorney. I've chased after copyright infringers before. Send a formal cease and desist letter, and threaten legal action for the infringement. They don't want the hassle. They just want to steal what is easy to steal. Good luck!

Martha said...

Have you tried contacting the user who stole them, directly? (Unless I don't understand the site and there's no telling who they are?) If you haven't, it seems that it might be worth doing, in case they either don't understand copyright or at least aren't willing to risk trouble.

Martha said...

Oh - I just realized that they're _crediting_ you. Surely if they already acknowledge your ownership, they're not going to require you to go through the whole rigmarole? Did they refuse?

Tina said...

Hi, Curbstone,
thanks for popping by!
I'm still waiting on a response from the online form, then I'll probably go from there with a letter. And, yeah, I know they don't want the hassle, but neither do I! :( I'd rather be spending my time playing in soil than dealing with low-lifes.

Tina said...

Hiya, Chicken Freak,
thanks for dropping in!
I haven't heard anything back so far, but you wouldn't think it would be worth it for them to argue the point? And you have to register to send messages . . . yadda, yadda.