My DMCA is being challenged

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   theraggededgeposted 2 years ago

   I recently submitted a DMCA to a Wordpress.com blog that republished an article I wrote in 2017. I've had a response from Automattic Trust & Safety who appear to be the organisation that handles these cases for Wordpress.
   
   They've said that I'm the one who copied the original article because the date shown on the blog is 2007.
   
   Is there any way HubPages can confirm that my publish date is original?

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      Matt Wellsposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Try filing a DMCA complaint with Google. At least you may be able to get the copied content removed from search engines. See #3 in this FAQ entry.

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         theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks, Matt, but that isn't the issue. It's the fact that Wordpress is threatening legal action against me.
         
         I have found that the site wasn't launched until 2014 so there's no way they can claim a publish date of 2007.
         
         Also, it's very easy to backdate a WP post so that the metadata reflects any date you want.

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   PaulGoodman67posted 2 years ago

   That's weird and worrying. How can that blog show a date that's ten years earlier? There's obviously some fakery going on there!

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      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Here's the source code on the offending page...
      
      
      
      

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         chef-de-jourposted 2 years agoin reply to this

         I'm no techy, know nothing about source codes but I can see four dates -
         
         May 2007 twice
         
         October 2007
         
         December 2021
         
         Does this mean the blogsite was set up in 2007 and the plagiarised article added in 2021?
         
         Please keep us updated on progress Bev.

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   theraggededgeposted 2 years ago

   I've done some digging (you've no idea how much this is bothering me) and found two places that confirm that the site was launched in 2014.
   
   https://web.archive.org/web/20220000000 … dpress.com
   
   https://carbondate.cs.odu.edu/#https:// … dpress.com
   
   That second one isn't now showing the date, but I saved it first time. It says, Estimated creation date: 2014-06-06T15:42:20"
   
   So there's no way that article could have been published in 2007. Also, the exact page hasn't been archived by the Wayback Machine at all. Yet that year is all over the page, in the URL, under the title, and at the end.
   
   https://eternalamarnat.wordpress.com/20 … -i-a-wich/
   
   The whole site is Serbian, except for my article, which appears as the very first entry. You can even tell it's my style of writing.
   
   I've sent all the stuff I found to the Automattic people.

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      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      

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   MizBejabbersposted 2 years ago

   I have come to the conclusion that anything one publishes on HP is in peril, and there is little that anyone can do. As much as I don't like it, I just ignore the notifications that a hub is duplicated. I've filed a couple of DMCAs, and never heard a word back. The stolen hubs are still on the thieves' websites. As they say, "I'm sorry for your loss." I hope that you can see favorable results.

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   Rupert Taylorposted 2 years ago

   I'm with you in this Doris. I've had dozens of articles stolen but I find the DMCA process so convoluted I can't grasp it. Uncovering source code, as Bev has, requires skills I don't possess. And, even if I've found the source code, what then? I haven't a clue.
   
   Same thing when I look up Whois. I get pages of numbers, letters and symbols that mean nothing to me.
   
   It's galling to have to step aside and let the rogues get away with it, but that's what I do. Even if I do track down a thief the usual response is to be given the middle finger.

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   Abby Slutskyposted 2 years ago

   DMCA is a waste of time.

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      Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

      We're not even at the mercy of Hubpages or Google.

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      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      In the past, I've filed many DMCAs direct to the web hosting company. I'd say eight out of ten are successful in getting the content removed. I never bother with any other method. Lately, though, I can hardly be bothered. As soon as one gets taken down, it's stolen by someone else.

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         eugbugposted 2 years agoin reply to this

         Are Automattic Trust & Safety a real entity or could they or whoever is threatening legal action be scammers? I received an email from someone who had used one of my images on Pixabay. They said that a law firm had threatened them with legal action, on behalf of their client, for use of the client's image (which was mine). They removed it from their website just in case. When I did a bit of research, it turned out that the law firm appeared to be scammers. Needless to say, neither the client nor law firm would reply to me and photos of the lawyers from the law firm turned up on other sites, so I'm not sure who was copying who's profile photos.

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            theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

            Well, they responded directly to my DMCA submission. I'm pretty sure they are part of the WordPress organisation. Or WordPress is under their umbrella.
            
            https://automattic.com
            
            They've been in touch again, saying they aren't taking any action. In other words, they won't remove the copied article. I've sent them another email with yet more proof.

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   psycheskinnerposted 2 years ago

   You can typically  document when it first appears with a Wayback link
   https://archive.org/web/
   
   If that doesn't work, there are other ways to show where and when a unique text was first found online
   
   I would also suggest going public with their tactics on your socials, because they could very easily have checked this themselves.

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      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, I checked. The page in question does not appear, suggesting it was created fairly recently. I guess it was late 2021 going by the page source code.
      
      Good idea about Twitter (no FB), thanks for the suggestion.
      
      Edit: Ah... maybe you meant when my article first appeared on HP? It does, but only back to 2019 because of the transfer to Exemplore. I've asked Matt by email if he can find out the original URL. I tried to work it out but no luck.

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         Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

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            Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

            Bev, sorry. I'm wondering how the transfer of an article, to a network site, can complicate the url.

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   theraggededgeposted 2 years ago

   Oh yay. It took a while and a lot of arguing but...
   
   "Your DMCA Notice has been received and reviewed for completeness.
   
   In accordance with the requirements set forth by the DMCA, we have disabled access to the allegedly infringing material. Please note that we have notified the user who uploaded the material to provide them an opportunity to formally challenge this removal. We will notify you if the user submits a counter notice."
   
   Thank you,
   
   Automattic Trust & Safety

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   Rupert Taylorposted 2 years ago

   Congratulations. I freely admit I don't have the persistence you have. It's a shame that it takes so much effort to deal with the low lives who steal our work.

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    Titiaposted 2 years ago

    Good for you to keep digging and arguing.  Some of my articles are stolen too, but since I filed a DMCA the wrong way (so mine was taken down and not theirs) I'm afraid to file another DMCA. It's not easy when English is not your native language. Especially when tech talk is needed. I wouldn't have known where to look for all that stuff you found.

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       theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

       It took me a couple of days to work out how to get it all. If they had never responded I probably would have let it go... it was the fact they accused me of stealing it and threatened that they could sue me. Well, that's like a red rag to a bull. There was no way I would let up on them

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          eugbugposted 2 years agoin reply to this

          Well done. I'd be furious too with the injustice of it all.

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             theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

             Indeed. I get irritated when accused of doing something that I didn't do

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                Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

                Congiatulaions, Bev. I marvel at Your irritated and irresitible spirit.

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