MicrostockGroup
Agency Based Discussion => Cutcaster => Topic started by: johngriffin on March 16, 2009, 20:35
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What are your thoughts on requiring a contributor to prove their identity bf they upload? Do you still upload to sites that make you do this? What is your perception of sites when you see that they do this? Do you think contributors should have to apply to get accepted or should it be open to all to just upload? Will a person upload a fake id to get through? What are other ways a site can safeguard themselves?
I'd love to hear any of your thoughts and have this be an open discussion for other agencies/sites to join in as well as we are all in this boat together and get burned by image theft or waste our money reviewing and detecting content that is uploaded by a thief. I have been dealing with one persistent guy who has been uploading stolen images to our site which have been easy to detect (some of you I have emailed specifically about this when I see your images and I have been in contact with 123rf, Photo Stock and Crestock about fake accounts and copyrighted images on their site too so we can join forces in bringing this scumbag down) and I am thinking of implementing this requirement to upload to the site. Personally, I have resisted and I really hate to do it but would love to hear your thoughts.
What about creating a Wall of Shame that outs these scams, the scammers, their username or registered name, their IP address and any other pertinent information so all agencies and contributors can see what is going on and be on the lookout. We definitely need a layer of transparency to help everyone avoid this and bust these people. I can't even begin to imagine how much revenue is lost by people due to thieves uploading their material.
I'll give you an example of a fake account that has sold images at Crestock and needs to be taken offline. This is definitely not to call out Crestock but to help everyone monitor this better.
http://www.crestock.com/profile/namlehoang22.aspx
I have been in contact with them about this offender and we are working together. We need more of this in the future.
John
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Absolutely.. I think it is needed at this point in the game.. There is rampant stealing and re-selling images..
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In my opinion John it's and excellent idea, by protecting your end you help in protecting us, the contributors, we all need to get together in eliminating the theft and scam problem...
The bottom line is, all of us have to provide government legal ID's on other sites, so I have a good idea that no straight forward professional is going to have a problem with you implementing this regulation at Cutcaster.
Best regards.
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It's definitely a good idea. Many sites already do this.
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Anyone one who expects a professional business that deals courteously and in a timely fashion with them, and pays out regularly and with no issues, yet doesn't want to provide proof of their identity, should just be ignored.
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John yes, some sites already require a photo id (driver's license, hospitalization card, passport) with valid address before accepting your images.
That would be a first line of deterrent for scammers and image thieves.
What about buyers? would you require the same from them. Perharps with some incidents of fraudulent credit cards?
Whatever precaution or screening you do on your end, will definitely be a giant step in the interest of both your company and your contributors, for sure.
The next step would obviously be getting the other sites to think like you. Cheers.
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I personally am not sure what providing a copy of someone's I.D. will do - if someone is going to upload work that belongs to others I don't see why they would think twice about providing false identification? Contributors come from all over the world and speak multiple languages - how are you going to know if they have provded you will false ID or not?
For those sites that require identification, I always figured it was largely for tax purposes.
Having said that, I suspect most legitimate contributors would have no problem with it as they have already had to do it for other sites. Personally I don't like it because I really am scared about identity theft and do not like the idea that a company out there in cyberspace has a copy of my vital details ... but I have done it for a couple sites because we had no choice - but I don't like especially and it makes me uncomfortable.
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Personally I agree any contributor should ask to be allowed to upload to any site. And he may be accepted or declined even without futher explanation. But that is all. I really hate the send-me-a-goverment-issued-document crap. And in general this BigBrother paranoia of wanting documents and personal data everywhere. I hate having copies of my ID all over the world. And I do not see how it might help. If I wanted to cheat or sell stolen photos, I could make a false document in a whip.
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This is a situation in which a professional microstock photographers organization could help. It could validate the photographers credentials and prosecute criminals. Legal action needs to be taken against those that steal and resell another's work. Until that happens, these crooks will just move from ISP/name to another.
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This is a situation in which a professional microstock photographers organization could help. It could validate the photographers credentials and prosecute criminals. Legal action needs to be taken against those that steal and resell another's work. Until that happens, these crooks will just move from ISP/name to another.
good point. one reason why id fraud, unscrupulous telemarketers, imposter banks, nigerian scammers,etc are still rampant . scammers are always one step ahead.
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scammers are always one step ahead.
That last part is what makes me leery of uploading a picture id. I know some require it for a payout, but how is it protected. Isn't it asking for trouble to have all that info stored in one place? Wasn't it one of the biggest of the big 6 that was hacked just a couple of weeks ago?
How will it be protected, John?
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I don't mind having to prove my identity in order to get a payout. Everything about me is out in the open as it is due to my husbands job.
As for the invite everyone I think it's a fine line. You want a variety of styles of images on the site to attract buyers. But at the same time you don't want a lot of useless crap (think typical myspace) that will frustrate buyers and give you the reputation of a desperate wanna be.
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I'm all for making it more secure but please do remember that there are people like me out here too.
I don't have a driving license.
I don't have a passport.
I don't have either because I have medical conditions which don't permit me to drive and due to them, I can't work either, hence why my photography sales mean so much to me, it allows me to actually contribute towards the upkeep of my family and as our family are struggling along anyway I can't go and pop £80 out for a passport I'll never travel with, not while there are shoes to buy and mouths to feed.
So by all means, please yes, help to cut down fraud but look into other methods of proving identity too.
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@Einochi i am sure if you told a site that story that would give you the benefit of the doubt.
what are other ways we can prove the identity of the uploader?
i really like tineye and think that is going to be a great company.
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I am Canadian and if I remember correctly I sent photo ID to Istock and before I could get paid I also had to mail a completed TD-1 or whatever that employment form number is with my SIN # and tax info on it. I get a T-4 (earnings) from them every year for taxes. I doubt they send documents to non-residents though.
Don't you (the agency) require some kind of declaration of citizenship? Doesn't the IRS care about what Americans earning with your agency? I would expect that this is the main reason the agencies require id.
And the original question, yes I would have a difficult time uploading ID to just any new agency. You are quite new, but seem trustworthy. Maybe you can request it upon the first payment.
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@ PIXART That is all really great info.
"And the original question, yes I would have a difficult time uploading ID to just any new agency. You are quite new, but seem trustworthy. Maybe you can request it upon the first payment."
That seems like a good time as well. We have a ton of tracking in place to keep an eye on the buyers as well as who they buy from so if there is anything fishy and the seller is involved, getting an ID before you make the payment seems fair in almost all case. Obviously case like Einochi are different and there will be exceptions but it will definitely be more scrutiny in those cases.
I don't blame people for not wanting to upload an ID.
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If I remember correctly SS requires that the photocopy be mailed in. That would eliminate the "upload" and "online" hacking worries. Particularly if you did a simple background check based on the ID and then stored the paper file, not putting excess info into the database. If memory serves me I had to mail it in with a contributor document that had to be signed. Or was that IS?
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anyone know if that is true? that could be a great way to store and check the info without having it online and open to hacking.
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I faxed forms to SS.
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I don't know about SS but DT and IS ask for drivers licence or passport and FT asks for your social security number, and you do have to provide it before you can open an account with them, wether or not you can fax a copy to them, I really don't know, but I don't think so...I can't remember if 123rf or BigStock requested similar stuff...As for Einochi's case, I feel really bad about the position he's in, maybe a copy of his government disability papers could be enough in his case, just a thought.
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As a non-American, I didn't have to send a SS number to FT, but remember sending my Drivers License.
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I don't know about SS but DT and IS ask for drivers licence or passport and FT asks for your social security number, and you do have to provide it before you can open an account with them, wether or not you can fax a copy to them, I really don't know, but I don't think so...I can't remember if 123rf or BigStock requested similar stuff...As for Einochi's case, I feel really bad about the position he's in, maybe a copy of his government disability papers could be enough in his case, just a thought.
I've never had to send any of these. Maybe it's because I've not applied for a payout?
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Warren, then concider yourself lucky, because as far as I know, you can't even finish your contributors application without the ID pdf copy and on FT it is part of the application's info...Pixart in your case that's probably it, since you're from another country they may have settle with your DL#, concider yourself lucky as well, cause if there is an information that I hate posting on any site is my SS number, to many things going on with identity theft and all.
Best regards.