Anyone Have Experience with Someone Illegally Copying Their Article?

1. 92

   Abby Slutskyposted 3 years ago

   Hi,
   
   Just saw that HP noticed that my article is posted somewhere without permission. Has anyone ever posted a complaint with a similar situation? I am not sure what to do.

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   1. 99

      DrMark1961posted 3 years agoin reply to this

      What can you do? You can get all upset, have some coffee, throw some choice words at the SOBs that copied your stuff, and file a DCMA.
      Or, you can go out on your porch (balcony, back yard, orchard, or whatever), think about what nasty people there are in this world, and ignore it since Google is only going to rank that article above yours if it is on Youtube or one of their own sites. You can just ignore it and get on with your life, like I try to do.
      (This is not good advice if it was copied to Youtube. Google will show that article above your own.)

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   2. 82

      bravewarriorposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      I would (and have, many times) file a DMCA as carolynkaye outlines below. If you have trouble, come back and we'll help you through the steps, but HP has a pretty good template once you click on the "copied" button within the article itself. You want to view it on HubPages.com (author view.)

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   3. 89

      theraggededgeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Find out the web host of the infringing site. Use whois.net or another whois site. You can usually find an abuse email address. Some have an online form (in which case ignore the following).
      
      Copy a DMCA and fill in the details. Send.
      
      Here's a DMCA form:
      
      I am writing to you to avail myself of my rights under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). This letter is a Notice of Infringement as authorized in §512 of the U.S. Copyright Law.
      
      1. The copyrighted work at issue is the text that appears on:
      
      **Your hub URL
      
      2. The URLs where my copyrighted work is being infringed upon include:
      
      **The infringing site URL
      
      3. My contact information is as follows:
      
      [your full name]
      [your address]
      
      [email]4. 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. 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.
      
      [your full name]
      
      Oh yes, as Carolyn says, if China or Russia, don't bother.

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      1. 92

         Abby Slutskyposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you everyone for your kind responses.

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   4. 100

      chef-de-jourposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      I've mellowed out over the years when it comes to cheating conniving orrible awful mercenary thievin plagiarists .....but I do still have a set procedure when I discover illegal goings on:
      
      If the website has a contact I write a polite email asking for the copied article to be taken down.
      
      If no response I write a less polite email.
      
      I go to whois.net for contact host.
      
      I file a DMCA which alerts Google and that usually does the trick.
      
      https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools … B&rd=1

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      1. 92

         Abby Slutskyposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you for your assistance.

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      2. 99

         DrMark1961posted 3 years agoin reply to this

         Hi, just wondering if you have seen any changes in traffic if you do go to the bother of filing a DCMA.

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         1. 100

            chef-de-jourposted 3 years agoin reply to this

            Must admit I don't know about traffic changes but I'm still stirred up enough to file a DMCA when I come across one of these educational websites  blatantly promoting my work as theirs. By filing I hope to dissuade them from further illegalities, make them think twice or alter their approach somehow. And Google lists all the successful DMCA take downs if I recall. Happy to say it doesn't happen that often these days.

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            1. 99

               DrMark1961posted 3 years agoin reply to this

               Yes, I definitely understand getting stirred up about it. I see my articles all the time copied in blogs and they usually claim it as their own work.
               The reason I asked you about this as I noticed you have a lot of traffic. My copies do not seem to affect traffic as Google ranks them lower than the original. (The only time they rank a copy higher is when it is on Youtube. I wrote one and even though it was placed immediately as the snippet a Youtuber copied it and had 3 times as many views as mine. I had to contact Google to take it down, and then they let the Youtuber know my email so he contacted me and whined about how I should let him copy my work.)

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               1. 100

                  chef-de-jourposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                  Yes, well, I thankfully don't have any problems with YT copies but I guess I'd react in a similar fashion to what I do for general plagiarism if I did discover a YT thief. More strength to you for getting the copy taken down - if we as authors don't at least try to do something then we're giving a green light to those who thieve and copy and connive. Vive la DMCA is my chant! What else can we do, there is no effective internet police force! Keep at it.

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   5. 86

      Stella Kayeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      This has happened to me a lot and now I don't bother complaining although I used to but didn't get anywhere with those complaints. As I hardly get any payment from my writing anyway, it doesn't make any difference in that respect and at least these sites who hijack writing from other sites do sometimes give credit to the original author which is better than passing them off as their own. It is still something that is unacceptable though without author permission.  Perversely, you can maybe gain some satisfaction as I do, knowing that someone has thought highly enough of your writing to reproduce it!

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2. 96

   carolynkayeposted 3 years ago

   It happens a lot unfortunately. There should be a sample DMCA letter on the Author View page of your copied Hub. I typically email the hosting company of the infringing site rather than contacting the infringer directly. The copied content usually gets taken down faster except for a few countries that ignore DMCAs. There are various websites where you can look up the hosting company "who is hosting this" etc. I hope this helps!

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3. 97

   Rupert Taylorposted 3 years ago

   I've found chasing after the scoundrels is mostly an exercise in futility. An outfit called ISSUU.com has pinched several of my articles
   
   After going through whois.net  I get this
   
   Domain Name: ISSUU.COM
   Registry Domain ID: 934132683_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN
   Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.registrar.amazon.com
   Registrar URL: http://registrar.amazon.com
   Updated Date: 2019-01-17T09:30:32Z
   Creation Date: 2007-04-19T15:39:49Z
   Registry Expiry Date: 2020-04-19T15:39:49Z
   Registrar: Amazon Registrar, Inc.
   Registrar IANA ID: 468
   Registrar Abuse Contact Email:
   Registrar Abuse Contact Phone:
   Domain Status: clientTransferProhibited https://icann.org/epp#clientTransferProhibited
   Name Server: NS-1343.AWSDNS-39.ORG
   Name Server: NS-1582.AWSDNS-05.CO.UK
   Name Server: NS-426.AWSDNS-53.COM
   Name Server: NS-757.AWSDNS-30.NET
   DNSSEC: unsigned
   URL of the ICANN Whois Inaccuracy Complaint Form: https://www.icann.org/wicf/
   >>> Last update of whois database: 2020-02-01T02:02:22Z <<<
   
   How is a simple country lad supposed to tease out the host from that gobbledygook? I hear my father speaking "Save your breath to cool your porridge son."

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4. 97

   Rupert Taylorposted 3 years ago

   Thanks Beth - I think. But if someone uploads an article to ISSUU without permission how is that not theft?
   
   Oh dear. I feel like I'm being sucked into the vortex of futility again. That is not directed at you Beth.

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   1. 0

      Beth Eaglescliffeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Oops! I deleted my original post by mistake.
      
      Yes it is still theft. Compare it to HubPages or Medium, if one of their contributors posted stolen content, then your argument would be with the individual, not the content platform.
      
      You can contact ISSUU directly and ask them to remove the items. They have a system for dealing with copied material. See the two links below.
      https://help.issuu.com/hc/en-us/article … ringement-
      https://help.issuu.com/hc/en-us/article … uarantined

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5. 78

   Rodric29posted 3 years ago

   I have. I had to contact the person who did it and let them know that I was aware that they fraudulently took credit for my work on their website. It happened over ten years ago. My feelings were very hurt. It was the article The Truth About Being Black in America.
   
   They took it down. I was flattered that they thought so much of what I wrote to plagiarise. A Hubpages reader, whom I do not recall, reported it to me. I am so thankful that I was able to find out. At the time, that was my most widely read article.

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6. 84

   Ben716posted 3 years ago

   I have two relationship articles that are virtually copied by start-up sites. This has been going on for the past two years until I get fed up pushing on.
   
   I usually locate their hosting provider and use the Hubpages infringement complaint, and my rights. It has worked on several as they've forced the sites to take down the copyrighted articles.
   
   Approaching the site owners has never proved fruitful. They always ignore even if they have provided the complaint form or email address to spit out your grievances.
   
   As a result, my articles are receiving less traffic than usual. Unless you take the legal path of suing them, there is little you can do.

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   1. 100

      chef-de-jourposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Keep at it, don't give in. Go to whois.net for abuse contact. Then file a DMCA if you can. If all fails at least you've given yourself a morale boost by trying to stop the thief.

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   2. 99

      DrMark1961posted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Over time articles increase or decrease in popularity and traffic. How do you know that your articles are receiving less traffic as a result of this?

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7. 89

   theraggededgeposted 3 years ago

   Sometimes getting in touch with the site owner works. I've had two cases where the first one was the National Trust in the UK. Someone who contributed to their blog stole an article of mine so I sent them a bill for unauthorised use. They paid up.
   
   The second one eventually took down the article after Go Daddy suspended six of his websites. They gave the 'offender' my contact info and he phoned me at home, which was disconcerting to say the least. However I ended writing some content for him and earned about $500.
   
   I generally go to the host first. As a last resort I have the pages removed from Google's search results.
   
   Haven't had a copied notification for a while, which I think maybe yet another feature that has been suspended during the migration. I hate going on a search spree myself because I really don't want to find any.

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   1. 100

      chef-de-jourposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Love the idea of sending a bill but I wouldn't have the nerve to do that myself! I guess you have an official pay up or else plagiarist form they cannot refuse filling in?

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      1. 89

         theraggededgeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         No, I just format an invoice and send with a covering letter. Have only done it twice. I was really mad that the NT thought it was okay to steal. Turns out it was someone they'd entrusted to provide some nice 'cosy' content. She'd taken half of my article and half of another person's blog post.
         
         That article on Welsh food was originally on Squidoo and the first person to copy it was a prolific hubber. She copied everything, images as well. Took me ages to make her take it down. HP didn't want to know. I think she's still here but I can't remember her name. She swore blind she'd written it first even though I provided proof of date of publication.

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         1. 92

            Abby Slutskyposted 3 years agoin reply to this

            Thank you for sharing.

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