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Microstock Photography Forum - General => General Stock Discussion => Topic started by: leremy on May 23, 2021, 04:30

Title: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on May 23, 2021, 04:30
Gosh. What can I say? Today I just reported at least 20 listings that took my vector and sell at Etsy. The worst part is that these thieves always take the best seller.

From my rough calculation, I think I lost at least thousands of dollar from these.

Simply browsing through the portfolio at Etsy, I think that 95% of the works are stolen and these shops sell thousand and thousand of sales. You can check their number there.

These piracy need to stop :(
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on May 23, 2021, 07:40
I used to find hundreds of my works on there whenever I searched. I reported DMCA'd as many as I could find for a few months and now rarely if ever find abything. I think there a re a few people/ groups responsible for the majority of these huge portfolios featuring stolen vectors. It becomes too much hassle for them if you keep up with the reports. I know that a few of us working as a team got some of the biggest ports shut down a while ago and would repeat each time they reappeared.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on May 23, 2021, 09:48
I thought of using this service from https://www.protectmywork.com/ (https://www.protectmywork.com/) to protect my work.

I think it might be easier to report to Etsy and close them by registering my work there. The price is consider affordable at least.

What I am afraid is it doesn't work. Has any of you have experience about copyrighting your work?
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: panicAttack on May 23, 2021, 10:48
I just sent email today to copyright lawyer from my country who works on provision.

Every time I report they just remove portfolio without any compensation to real author, me.

Etsy also made money from someone else theft so they are kind of cooperate in this action

I will let you know what I got

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on May 23, 2021, 12:16
I just sent email today to copyright lawyer from my country who works on provision.

Every time I report they just remove portfolio without any compensation to real author, me.

Etsy also made money from someone else theft so they are kind of cooperate in this action

I will let you know what I got

Etsy does nothing and if you complain enough, they will shut down your account. They just want the listing fees. Look at the "rare" coins which are just obvious fraud. Etsy does nothing
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: panicAttack on May 23, 2021, 17:44
I just sent email today to copyright lawyer from my country who works on provision.

Every time I report they just remove portfolio without any compensation to real author, me.

Etsy also made money from someone else theft so they are kind of cooperate in this action

I will let you know what I got

Etsy does nothing and if you complain enough, they will shut down your account. They just want the listing fees. Look at the "rare" coins which are just obvious fraud. Etsy does nothing

Yes, but I don't care what they do or don't. I don't have account there. Just few people there selling my work from stock sites. I will inform if i made any progress with copyright lawyer.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on May 24, 2021, 09:29
In case anyone wants to go the DMCA route here's the form:

https://www.etsy.com/legal/ip/report (https://www.etsy.com/legal/ip/report)

You can report multiple listings in one go
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on May 24, 2021, 20:28
I have reported 30-40 listings in the past 2 days.

Gosh, it's maddening. But the reporting is quite easy and straight forward.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on May 25, 2021, 03:07
I have reported 30-40 listings in the past 2 days.

Gosh, it's maddening. But the reporting is quite easy and straight forward.

I really did find that after doing that a few times over several months my worked stopped cropping up there. Good luck with it.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: DiscreetDuck on May 25, 2021, 11:30
I found violation of my work here.
I reported, and they acted deleting the files but...

The sellers are allowed to continue without any issues... only files reported are deleted.

https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque) (86 678 files sold!!!)
https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg)
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on May 25, 2021, 12:27
I found violation of my work here.
I reported, and they acted deleting the files but...

The sellers are allowed to continue without any issues... only files reported are deleted.

https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque) (86 678 files sold!!!)
https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg)
They need several strikes against the account before they delete it. If you see other people's work let them know so they can report also.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 01, 2021, 10:42
I found violation of my work here.
I reported, and they acted deleting the files but...

The sellers are allowed to continue without any issues... only files reported are deleted.

https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque) (86 678 files sold!!!)
https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/ywestberg)
They need several strikes against the account before they delete it. If you see other people's work let them know so they can report also.

Oh a good reason for all of us to keep checking and reporting.

Yes, but I don't care what they do or don't. I don't have account there. Just few people there selling my work from stock sites. I will inform if i made any progress with copyright lawyer.

Sorry I thought you had both. Good luck getting some action against the thieves.

Personally Etsy can delete my account, they are useless, besides the image misuse and thievery, they have no monitoring for accuracy or lies or misrepresenting items for sale. Back to, Etsy makes their money on charging for listings, the rest is just a scam to make people think they can make money from their personal work. Like Microstock, a very small number do earn, the majority sell nothing and make no return on their efforts.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 01, 2021, 11:01
I found violation of my work here.
I reported, and they acted deleting the files but...

The sellers are allowed to continue without any issues... only files reported are deleted.

https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque (https://www.etsy.com/fr/shop/Designesque) (86 678 files sold!!!)


87420 Sales now and I can only guess, but over 10,000 stolen clipart images. 20c listing fee that auto renews would be $2,000 each period. Sales $2.80 Etsy takes 5%. In round numbers, each sale makes $2.40 but of course some never sell. 87,420 x $2.40 = $209,808 (minus fees which I can't estimate accurately) 20c per item every four months.

Maybe I should go into the clipart business?

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 07, 2021, 10:52
This is so true.

I filed DMCA reports for over 200 listings of my photos. Etsy removed them pretty fast.

Moreover, before that, I even asked some thieves about their licenses to sell.

Me: Hi, I am the author of this photo. Can you please let me know what kind of license you have to sell prints of it?

Thief1: Hello, I am selling it for personal use, as a download. I bought it from the Adobe Stock website.

Me: it doesn't matter. According to Adobe licensing, you may not:

Distribute the stand-alone file.
Create merchandise, templates, or other products for resale or distribution where the primary value of the product is associated with the asset itself. For example, you can't use the asset to create a poster, t-shirt, or coffee mug that someone would buy specifically because of the asset printed on it.


Thief1: Ok, I will remove it then...

or:

Me: Hi, I am the author of this photo. Can you please let me know what kind of license you have to sell prints of it?

Honest Thief: Hi,

The correct one as far as I know.

I am not at work at the moment so would have to check when I am back.

I'll take it down in the meantime until I can confirm. Don't think we've actually sold it.

Kind Regards
Steve


Me: Please check. I doubt that you have the right to sell prints. [... mention same Adobe licensing rules, as an example ...]

Honest Thief: Understood. We don't use adobe images to source the imagery though which is confusing. I'll have to check

Me: [... list 43 additional examples of photos stolen from me available for sale on his gallery...]

Honest Thief
: They will be off within 24 hours. I am sorry I am a little in shock the amount you started sending through. If I remember right, we bought these from a bundle advertised online. Website like "by the people" or "for the people" or something, I can't remember exactly. It was a zip download saying full seller resell rights included. I do remember at the time thinking they were brilliant and a bargain. I am beginning to regret that now. If we have made a mistake, I sincerely apologise.

Kind Regards
Steve


Me: Ok. You should understand that by buying and reselling stolen photos, you are not only competing with the agency (empowered by me to sell licenses of my work) but also with myself since I'm also selling my prints. You can be in deep legal trouble if you continue to do it with other stolen photos obtained from such shady websites. I would delete them all before other authors take notice.

Honest Thief
: I completely agree and understand. But we didn’t know they were without the rights. As far as we knew we paid correctly for them. The website looked legit and not shady at the time. I’ll try and check where exactly we sourced them from. I genuinely try my hardest to avoid this sort of thing.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 07, 2021, 11:24
Here is the list of my thieves, so far...

WallRepublic
EliteCanvasArt
ColorInkArtStudio
ArtDigitalStore
AnnyPrints
Wall26Store
ExtraLargeWallDecor
LuckyCanvasStore
CanvasGalery
LWhomedecor
MaxWallArt
WallpaperHomeArt
CanvasStoreStudio
CoolWallsStore
LovelyHomeUA
BoldBlocDesignLtd
WoodLikeLifeShop
vivicanvas
DreamFamilyArt
WallArtStudio365
ColorInkArtStudio
CanvasPrintShop
WorldWallArtShop
LabsCanvas
JackiePrint
CanvasArtBay
ContempCanvas
WallArtCanvasShop
ArtPrintShopV
CanvasPrintingShop
FramedArtCo
CoastalBeachStudio
MishMashCoStore
4loftwalldecor
WallsByMe
LabsCanvas
....
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 07, 2021, 14:39
I hate to ask this, but don't some agencies allow people to license and then sell prints? Adobe? Not that I have anything that people want to steal, but just asking.

If there are any, which ones?


Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 07, 2021, 14:55
.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 07, 2021, 17:36
Maybe @MatHayward can clarify the Extended License is grating Etsy sellers the right to sell prints.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: MatHayward on June 07, 2021, 18:06
Maybe @MatHayward can clarify the Extended License is grating Etsy sellers the right to sell prints.

Please refer to the license details page here for allowable use with an Extended license: https://stock.adobe.com/license-terms#extendedLicenses

thank you,

Mat
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 07, 2021, 18:36
Maybe @MatHayward can clarify the Extended License is grating Etsy sellers the right to sell prints.

Please refer to the license details page here for allowable use with an Extended license: https://stock.adobe.com/license-terms#extendedLicenses

thank you,

Mat

So just to be clear on how to read it: it says that

With an Enhanced license, you may not:

Distribute the stand-alone file.
Create merchandise, templates, or other products for resale or distribution where the primary value of the product is associated with the asset itself. For example, you can't use the asset to create a poster, t-shirt, or coffee mug that someone would buy specifically because of the asset printed on it.


and

With an Extended license, you may:

Use the asset with all the rights granted in the Standard license.
Reproduce the asset beyond the 500,000 copy/viewer restriction.
Create merchandise or products for resale or distribution where the main value of the product is associated with the asset itself, such as a coffee mug or t-shirt.


With an Extended license, you may not:
Distribute the stand-alone file.


So the poster is given as an example in the enhanced license, but it's not included in the example of the extended license.

Mat, it will be nice to get a simple Yes or No: is the Extended license granting Etsy sellers the right to sell posters?
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Bauman on June 08, 2021, 01:57
And ... what do you think about this one ? They indicate © Shutterstock or Fotolia/Adobe Stock on the pages, but I don't think it is possible to sell these backgrounds with digital download on other shops ...

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MixPixBox (https://www.etsy.com/shop/MixPixBox) (> 40.000 sales !)

And it also has a shop on Creative Market

https://creativemarket.com/MixPixBox (https://creativemarket.com/MixPixBox)

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 08, 2021, 10:57

With an Extended license, you may not:
Distribute the stand-alone file.[/i]

So the poster is given as an example in the enhanced license, but it's not included in the example of the extended license.

(Extended May:) Create merchandise or products for resale or distribution where the main value of the product is associated with the asset itself, such as a coffee mug or t-shirt.

Mat, it will be nice to get a simple Yes or No: is the Extended license granting Etsy sellers the right to sell posters?

Or photo prints? Which I guess the art/image is the value, while a mug or T-shirt, the view is, someone is paying for the product.

I'm back to asking, overall, what agencies allow someone to buy a license, subscription, basic, single or some other like extended and then sell prints? I can understand, none allow redistribution. So Etsy sales in the form of a download would be illegal in all cases, except by the original artist.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 08, 2021, 16:44
Update:

Out of the several hundreds of listings reported during the past couple of days, I receive counter-notices from 2 sellers, for 10 listings in total.

If I don't reply to the counter-notice, Etsy will automatically re-instate the listing after 10 days.

One of the sellers claims to have an extended license, but neither I nor Adobe can locate it.

The other has genuine extended licenses from DT (I verified them) and from 123RF.

He mentioned to me that he is happy to see that I took action since his business is also impacted by so many competing thieves.
He even offered to help me track them down.

I have a backlog of 40+ listings and I'll continue to report them.

Edit: here is what that seller wrote:

Regarding the copyright infringement issue, i have read this article that sums it up pretty much : https://alj.artrepreneur.com/etsy-copyright-infringement/

We are aware this is an issue, and are happy to join forces to fight it. To be fair, I have reached out to photographers  before (Sean Pavone), letting them know their photographs are most likely stolen without permission or proper license. So far, without much result. it seems like some photographers just accept it the way it is.Which is not okay and frustrating.

As stated earlier, I'm very happy you are hunting these sellers. And, are happy to join forces. Within the next upcoming days, I will submit you the cases on Etsy that I found.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 09, 2021, 15:23
Most of the PODs top sellers are pirates and to top it off there's the whole industry of derivative works where they slightly edit the images or the vector design in order to keep a low profile, finally you've the usual cases of plagiarism and cheap imitations and let's not forget the harder to find cases of "appropriative art" and the unfair use of the "fair use" which only stands in the USA and nowhere else.

There's absolutely nothing we can do, it's literally the Wild West and it can only get worse, just as next to nothing is being done against fakes and counterfait items sold in stores worldwide.

While for serious crimes you've nowhere to hide, for digital piracy you're totally at the mercy of these gangs of thieves operating outside the West and good luck suing somebody in India or China.

This is the result of the ongoing globalization.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 09, 2021, 16:49
Most of the PODs top sellers are pirates and to top it off there's the whole industry of derivative works where they slightly edit the images or the vector design in order to keep a low profile, finally you've the usual cases of plagiarism and cheap imitations and let's not forget the harder to find cases of "appropriative art" and the unfair use of the "fair use" which only stands in the USA and nowhere else.

There's absolutely nothing we can do, it's literally the Wild West and it can only get worse, just as next to nothing is being done against fakes and counterfait items sold in stores worldwide.

While for serious crimes you've nowhere to hide, for digital piracy you're totally at the mercy of these gangs of thieves operating outside the West and good luck suing somebody in India or China.

This is the result of the ongoing globalization.

It has nothing to do with big words like "globalization". Globalization is the reason why we can sell our stuff across the world, and not just in the local shop, and the reason we can afford to buy cameras and other equipment we use to generate content.

Anyway, for now, Etsy is free from those several hundreds of listings that illegaly used my work.

I also encourage everybody to file those complaints since those thieves will be banned from selling if they receive multiple DMCA take-down requests.

It may even be advisable to file individual requests when the same seller has multiple listings using your work because they will add up. I didn't do that anymore because there were way too many. Doing them in bulk for multiple sellers and multiple listings was significantly faster.

Here is what one of these illegal sellers just messaged me:

We did not know that these are your pictures.
Please contact us directly if there is anything else that needs to be deleted.
We received a second infringement from etsy, and this reflects very negative on our small family business.

Thank you for your understanding


I can't empathize with that since these thieves are also impacting our small business.

So these DMCA reports will have an effect if enough people will take action to protect their stuff.

Just do it! (instead of just complaining ;))
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 09, 2021, 16:57
.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 09, 2021, 17:35
It has nothing to do with big words like "globalization". Globalization is the reason why we can sell our stuff across the world, and not just in the local shop, and the reason we can afford to buy cameras and other equipment we use to generate content.

Anyway, for now, Etsy is free from those several hundreds of listings that illegaly used my work.

I also encourage everybody to file those complaints since those thieves will be banned from selling if they receive multiple DMCA take-down requests.

It may even be advisable to file individual requests when the same seller has multiple listings using your work because they will add up. I didn't do that anymore because there were way too many. Doing them in bulk for multiple sellers and multiple listings was significantly faster.

Here is what one of these illegal sellers just messaged me:

We did not know that these are your pictures.
Please contact us directly if there is anything else that needs to be deleted.
We received a second infringement from etsy, and this reflects very negative on our small family business.

Thank you for your understanding


I can't empathize with that since these thieves are also impacting our small business.

So these DMCA reports will have an effect if enough people will take action to protect their stuff.

Just do it! (instead of just complaining ;))

I appreciate your optimism and i wish you good luck, sorry if i was a bit pessimistic.

My new composites will never be sold on stock agencies or as a digital download so hopefully nobody will/could steal the hi-res images and resell them as POD/merch items, at best they could grab some 1000px preview file in my portfolio or whatever, sure they could resize it in many ways or take a photo of a physical print but why bother with me when there are billions of stock images around ?

My feeling is we reached the point where anything digital will be pirated, no matter what, so our only defence left is to exclusively sell physical goods.

I've nothing against Etsy but it's an american company, i can't sue them easily from europe while they can easily sell pirated items worldwide
with the excuse of the US' "Safe Harbor".
The US also enjoy the "fair use" concept, unheard of in the rest of the world.

I agree we should not go into politics but all these huge marketplaces are operating outside our laws because they're protected by US laws and because all the other countries are not moving a finger to fix the problem and never will, if even the EU is ok with this situation who will ever defend our rights ?

At this point it's legal or barely legal to steal pretty much anything digital, resell it, repackage it, rebranding it, and if you get caught you can get away saying sorry just as the thieves on Etsy said to you because they know the whole situation is a joke as long as they operate outside the West they'll never pay a fine or suffer any punishment.

Sending DMCAs will certainly help your situation but overall will not change much, still better than nothing.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on June 09, 2021, 22:26
I disagree with you @stocksaurus.

Evil prevail because good men like us do nothing. I have been joining forces to file copyright infringement of my artworks (Etsy, Shutterstock, etc), and I have successfully closed down many stores and portfolios. It does work.

Do take 1 day (or a few hours) in a month to browse through and see if your works are stolen at Etsy. I feel so good after filing these complains and the infringements were taken down the next day. It gives me peace and justice.

I know many of you prefer to close-one-eye on this matter because it felt troublesome or fear of being revenged. But you are being violated. You need to do something about it. Don't let them getaway this easily.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on June 10, 2021, 02:29
Vector artists also, please do a quick search for "svg" and "vector" on Etsy and get these dirtbags making thousands off your work shut down. They bundle hundreds of stolen vectors together and sell the files for a couple of dollars, which they can do because they haven’t had to put in the thousands of hours to produce the work.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 03:50
Vector artists also, please do a quick search for "svg" and "vector" on Etsy and get these dirtbags making thousands off your work shut down. They bundle hundreds of stolen vectors together and sell the files for a couple of dollars, which they can do because they haven’t had to put in the thousands of hours to produce the work.

Banning Printify, Printful, and the other "integrations" would be a good start, literally nobody is checking the ownership/license of the files going thru them, a thief could even claim to own a "Unsplash License" or having a paid membership in similar sites granting use for pseudo "CC0 images" lifted as usual from Flickr or torrent packs.

(https://i.ibb.co/gDS0kcz/Screenshot-2021-06-10-at-10-41-15-How-to-get-free-print-designs-Printify.png)

To top if off, one of the sites they recommend is called "Death to the stock photo".
See how they reason, it must be funny for them.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 04:13
I disagree with you @stocksaurus.

Evil prevail because good men like us do nothing. I have been joining forces to file copyright infringement of my artworks (Etsy, Shutterstock, etc), and I have successfully closed down many stores and portfolios. It does work.

Do take 1 day (or a few hours) in a month to browse through and see if your works are stolen at Etsy. I feel so good after filing these complains and the infringements were taken down the next day. It gives me peace and justice.

I know many of you prefer to close-one-eye on this matter because it felt troublesome or fear of being revenged. But you are being violated. You need to do something about it. Don't let them getaway this easily.

We are good men but the international laws do nothing to help us and protect us, and that's why there's a neverending debate about how to properly tax the american BigTech companies doing business in europe and paying almost no tax at all, Amazon, Google, Apple, Ebay, Facebook, Twitter, and many more and this is a real problem if you consider their monopolistic position, the only country that had the balls to ban Google and Facebook was China, go figure.

If the big guys are untouchable what can we expect to be made minor players like Etsy ?
And yet Etsy is europe's nr.1 craft/handmade marketplace, is operating in EU territory, grabbing fees by european sellers, collecting EU VAT on their buyers., all while allowing the sale of counterfeit items and stolen photos/designs laughing all the way to their (offshore) bank.

Takiong 1 day a month to fight all this is the only thing we can do, as you do, but realistically it's not going to change anything, even proper stock agencies have been caught selling stolen items no matter if they ask IDs and model releases, there's always a way to get in.


Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 10, 2021, 09:30
I disagree with you @stocksaurus.

Evil prevail because good men like us do nothing. I have been joining forces to file copyright infringement of my artworks (Etsy, Shutterstock, etc), and I have successfully closed down many stores and portfolios. It does work.

Do take 1 day (or a few hours) in a month to browse through and see if your works are stolen at Etsy. I feel so good after filing these complains and the infringements were taken down the next day. It gives me peace and justice.

I know many of you prefer to close-one-eye on this matter because it felt troublesome or fear of being revenged. But you are being violated. You need to do something about it. Don't let them getaway this easily.

We are good men but the international laws do nothing to help us and protect us, and that's why there's a neverending debate about how to properly tax the american BigTech companies doing business in europe and paying almost no tax at all, Amazon, Google, Apple, Ebay, Facebook, Twitter, and many more and this is a real problem if you consider their monopolistic position, the only country that had the balls to ban Google and Facebook was China, go figure.

If the big guys are untouchable what can we expect to be made minor players like Etsy ?
And yet Etsy is europe's nr.1 craft/handmade marketplace, is operating in EU territory, grabbing fees by european sellers, collecting EU VAT on their buyers., all while allowing the sale of counterfeit items and stolen photos/designs laughing all the way to their (offshore) bank.

Takiong 1 day a month to fight all this is the only thing we can do, as you do, but realistically it's not going to change anything, even proper stock agencies have been caught selling stolen items no matter if they ask IDs and model releases, there's always a way to get in.

You are again using big words pushing your ideology, in a case that has nothing to do with it.

There is nothing wrong with not paying taxes, as long as the law is respected.
I am pretty certain that a very large majority among us would do exactly that, paying as little taxes as possible, when the law allows it.
If you don't like the laws, vote for politicians willing to change them and blame the politicians who made such laws.

You can't blame those who respect the laws. You can't wish to see their freedom to do business taken away, only because they are successful.

On the other hand, you can clearly act against the thieves from Etsy who are breaking the law and stealing from you.
Just do it, instead of using defeatism and ideological sophisms to justify your lack of action.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 10:16
Just do it, instead of using defeatism and ideological sophisms to justify your lack of action.

I'm all for low taxation, law, and order.
And that means counterfaiting/stealing/robbing photos or designs sold in PODs should be seen as a proper crime rather than a minor nuisance.

Again, i don't want to go into politics but as the topic evolved into DMCAs let me underline that if Etsy is allowed to run their business with total impunity is exactly because in the US they apply "Safe Harbor" provisions to the DMCA freeing the platform (Etsy) of any legal responsability towards their sellers userbase.

In other words we have all these nice IP/copyright laws but once a thief is caught the law can easily become unenforceable and unaffordable unless there's a lot of money at stake which is never the case with the Etsy/Ebay/Amazon crooks selling items for as low as 20-30 bucks.

I'm not defeatist, just being realist.
I'm also not blaming you for filing DMCAs, i'm just saying that because of the actual legal situation it's a total Wild West for content creators and there's no reason to expect any improvement unless the ISPs/platform will be legally liable for what is sold on their marketplaces, just as they would with a normal brick/mortar shop.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on June 10, 2021, 10:26
I understand your point of view. But please, we do what we can do, and filing infringement is the least we can do.

After taking down 30-40 listings that is infringing my bestseller, I now start seeing people buying from me again. This is a win. The reward from doing this is money, justice, peace of mind, and most of all... satisfaction.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 10, 2021, 10:46
Another PM I just received, I can't empathize with:

I am writing to you because Etsy took down one of the listings from my store due to copyright infringement.

 I want to personally apologize to you for this. It was not my intention to have your photo without your permission or rights, I had no idea that this image belonged to you and thought it was a public image, as you can see we don’t sell these type of photos we sell more of “street art and graphic designs”. I am very, very sorry.

We are a very small business without employees, it is just me. I run everything from my parents home and we have never sold your actual print it was in our store and I didn’t even notice until I got the email from Etsy.

 Etsy is my family’s main source of income, and I would never do anything intentionally to affect this or other artists as it is what allows me to provide for my family. We don’t even have it that art listed on our website, it was a mistake.

We will not be listing this image or any city images as we only work with free stock images for street art. I apologize once again, as an artist I understand how frustrating it can be for people to try to sell your art.

I am very sorry, it won’t happen again. 

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 10, 2021, 12:24

there's no reason to expect any improvement unless the ISPs/platform will be legally liable for what is sold on their marketplaces, just as they would with a normal brick/mortar shop.

While I also believe that Etsy could do more to maintain a good reputation and protect other honest sellers from unfair cheap stolen goods competition, your analogy is not so straightforward.
The equivalent of the brick-and-mortar shop you mentioned is not Etsy, but the seller using Etsy.

You can't blame the postal office for carrying packages with stolen goods, but you can blame the thieves using the postal services to ship stolen goods.
You can't blame the paper manufacturer for the content of newspapers printed on their paper.
You can't blame the wireless carrier for carrying calls made by criminals.

Having said that, I agree that Etsy could be more proactive in making sure that the users of its platform are respecting the laws.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 14:26

there's no reason to expect any improvement unless the ISPs/platform will be legally liable for what is sold on their marketplaces, just as they would with a normal brick/mortar shop.

While I also believe that Etsy could do more to maintain a good reputation and protect other honest sellers from unfair cheap stolen goods competition, your analogy is not so straightforward.
The equivalent of the brick-and-mortar shop you mentioned is not Etsy, but the seller using Etsy.

You can't blame the postal office for carrying packages with stolen goods, but you can blame the thieves using the postal services to ship stolen goods.
You can't blame the paper manufacturer for the content of newspapers printed on their paper.
You can't blame the wireless carrier for carrying calls made by criminals.

Having said that, I agree that Etsy could be more proactive in making sure that the users of its platform are respecting the laws.

Yes, the seller is the problem here, but there's no political will to change anything about it, so far only China and few others took a protectionist stance against some foreign BigTech corporations.

Soft crimes like copyright infringement are seen as a nuisance, but try doing some hard crime like selling drugs or explosives on etsy/ebay/amazon and the cops will knock at your door the next day.

Problem is, POD items are too cheap to bother our governments and nobody has any respect for creatives and artists in general, piracy is so widespread nobody would care if we end up under a bridge and some would cheer at the prospect of us being forced to get a "real job".

The only factor that could damage Etsy is a serious loss of reputation, their buyers must realize that Etsy is barely one step above Ebay and act accordingly.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 14:32
Another PM I just received, I can't empathize with:

I am very sorry, it won’t happen again. 

Good.
At least he was polite.

What makes me mad is we now have millions of sellers worldwide who can't draw, paint, photograph, design, edit, invent, and no matter what, somebody convinced them that in 2021 you don't need to invest years to master a craft anymore, all you need is a laptop and stolen digital items to resell.

Some of them are even very successful and yes indeed they could feed their whole family with Etsy alone if they live in Karachi or Saigon, good luck telling them about copyright infringement, they must feel like they're genius and we're all idiots.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 14:37
This is a win. The reward from doing this is money, justice, peace of mind, and most of all... satisfaction.

I'm happy for you !
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 10, 2021, 14:49
Vector artists also, please do a quick search for "svg" and "vector" on Etsy and get these dirtbags making thousands off your work shut down. They bundle hundreds of stolen vectors together and sell the files for a couple of dollars, which they can do because they haven’t had to put in the thousands of hours to produce the work.

This brings me to ask, how do people find their own works, without going through everything SVG and Vector? Or is that how you do it.

I don't think the proper term for the protection of websites is safe harbor and how they pay taxes or what anyone's political views are, has nothing to do with the issue either.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has been interpreted to mean that operators of Internet services are not "publishers" per the letter of the law. This means that unlike publishers, site owners are not legally liable for the words of third parties who use their services. Likewise sale or trading sites, like Etsy, eBay, Amazon, and many more, including the Microstock agencies, are not responsible for what the users put up on the site, if it is stolen or misrepresented. They do have a responsibility to monitor and correct illegal use, or issues with the laws, but the site is not liable.

So back to my question. How do I find these people on Etsy, do I have to go through every listing?
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 15:54
I don't think the proper term for the protection of websites is safe harbor and how they pay taxes or what anyone's political views are, has nothing to do with the issue either.

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has been interpreted to mean that operators of Internet services are not "publishers" per the letter of the law. This means that unlike publishers, site owners are not legally liable for the words of third parties who use their services. Likewise sale or trading sites, like Etsy, eBay, Amazon, and many more, including the Microstock agencies, are not responsible for what the users put up on the site, if it is stolen or misrepresented. They do have a responsibility to monitor and correct illegal use, or issues with the laws, but the site is not liable.

"Passed on October 12, 1998, by a unanimous vote in the United States Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on October 28, 1998, the DMCA amended Title 17 of the United States Code to extend the reach of copyright, while limiting the liability of the providers of online services for copyright infringement by their users.

The DMCA's principal innovation in the field of copyright is the exemption from direct and indirect liability of Internet service providers and other intermediaries. This exemption was adopted by the European Union in the Electronic Commerce Directive 2000. The Information Society Directive 2001 implemented the 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty in the EU. "

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 10, 2021, 16:01
Yes, the seller is the problem here, but there's no political will to change anything about it, so far only China and few others took a protectionist stance against some foreign BigTech corporations.


...and that's bad.

I don't see why you wish for some authoritarian government to limit freedoms, by allowing only their preferred companies to operate, by limiting the choices their citizens could have, by eliminating the competition and making things more expensive and worse for everybody (except for their cronies, of course)...


Again, you bring ideological arguments in a discussion that has nothing to do with ideology.

It's about ordinary theft, nothing more.


Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 10, 2021, 17:20
Yes, the seller is the problem here, but there's no political will to change anything about it, so far only China and few others took a protectionist stance against some foreign BigTech corporations.


...and that's bad.

I don't see why you wish for some authoritarian government to limit freedoms, by allowing only their preferred companies to operate, by limiting the choices their citizens could have, by eliminating the competition and making things more expensive and worse for everybody...


Again, you bring ideological arguments in a discussion that has nothing to do with ideology.

It's about ordinary theft, nothing more.

Globalization and open doors among western countries is mutually beneficial for all, the problem here is opening the doors to the millions of digital thieves operating in the third world.

Yes, their freedom to upload 100K stolen images and designs to Etsy or Ebay must be stopped because apart for being illegal it's also totally unfair to us, not only the PODs don't move a finger against piracy but they also allow these gangs to rank higher in their search, to flood any keyword with their products and therefore to gain a commercial advantage.

A real competition is good for all, but the kind of unfair competition we see now will kill the POD industry for the small honest and law-abiding players.

So, it's not ordinary theft, that would be true with our local common thieves, here instead we're witnessing the direct result of political decisions imposed from the USA to all of us. 

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 10, 2021, 17:26
.... and giving China as an example to be followed, when we discuss copyright protection is very precious!

Common man!  ::)

Do what is in your power to do, instead of sitting on your hands, blaming the world...
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on June 10, 2021, 21:19
So back to my question. How do I find these people on Etsy, do I have to go through every listing?

Etsy marketplace is not flooded like stock agencies. Usually a simple keyword only have a few pages of listings. So, for my case, I try to search for the keyword of my bestseller and browse through the listings.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 11, 2021, 07:18
.... and giving China as an example to be followed, when we discuss copyright protection is very precious!

I mentioned China just because they defend their national interests.
Allowing american multinationals to operate in their country and in their markets and eventually reaching a monopoly status as they do in the West is obviously a loss for their national interests.

The US did the same with Huawei and other chinese manufacturers, they also banned several russian news site and TV channels, Trump even tried to ban TaoBao, Alibaba, and Baidu.

Last week Nigeria banned Twitter, see it's not hard to make things better when there's the political will.

The only companies really caring about copyright infringement are the RM stock agencies and art galleries, anything else is a joke.



Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 11, 2021, 09:57
.... and giving China as an example to be followed, when we discuss copyright protection is very precious!

I mentioned China just because they defend their national interests.
Allowing american multinationals to operate in their country and in their markets and eventually reaching a monopoly status as they do in the West is obviously a loss for their national interests.

The US did the same with Huawei and other chinese manufacturers, they also banned several russian news site and TV channels, Trump even tried to ban TaoBao, Alibaba, and Baidu.

Last week Nigeria banned Twitter, see it's not hard to make things better when there's the political will.

The only companies really caring about copyright infringement are the RM stock agencies and art galleries, anything else is a joke.

"National interest" is another big ideological word.

Rest assured that those politicians who claim to defend the "national interest" are not doing anything more than defending their own interests and their cronies'.
They only use big words like "national interest" to justify their grip on power and economy in front of gullible followers.

Allowing real competition to flourish is in the real interest of all individuals in a country.

And yes, unfortunately, even the US took action against its own citizens, by banning some companies to compete in the US market, or making it harder for some.
Trump excelled with this anti-economical policy hurting the American people. It's sad to see that (although to a lesser extent) even Biden continues some of them.

Anyway, are you are now giving Nigeria as an example to follow? Seriously? Banning Twitter because their president was criticized? That's for sure in the name of the "national interest", and clearly not in the personal interest of the Nigerian president!  ;)

Talking about ideological brainwashing!  ::)

Having said that, you are again blaming the world for your failures, expecting others to protect your interest, instead of taking action and just do it.

BTW, I just submitted a new DMCA report for another batch of 34 listings.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 11, 2021, 14:18
Talking about ideological brainwashing!  ::)

Having said that, you are again blaming the world for your failures, expecting others to protect your interest, instead of taking action and just do it.

BTW, I just submitted a new DMCA report for another batch of 34 listings.

To reach the point where we have a proper "real competition" you need to reach the point where we have clear simple and effective laws that make punishment quickly enforceable.
Either that or all you get is the actual Wild West scenario where the scammers are winning their low-risk/high-gain game.

Nigeria is a great and funny example, Trump should have done the same to set the example.
Yes of course it's in their national interest because form now on the other US multinationals will think twice before f-cking with the nigerian president and their local users will now be forced to move on a local social network, again to the benefit to their local economy, win-win scenario in my opinion.

Look, i fully support your DMCAs but the problem here is we can only stick to DMCAs and nothing else, it's an uphill battle, the governments don't care, the ISPs don't care, the platforms don't care, the banks don't care, even the buyers don't care.

Whenever you hear somebody lamenting that artists got scr-ewed again remember the DMCA has been designed exactly for this purpose, any kind of liability from the Platforms has been lifted and the gates have been flooded by worldwide sellers acting with almost total impunity.
Artists got scr-ewed already in pre-internet times, nothing new, but now we're really on a different level, if this trend keeps going on in a few years it will become impossible to live with your art alone or with freelancing in general.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 11, 2021, 17:47

Look, i fully support your DMCAs but the problem here is we can only stick to DMCAs and nothing else, it's an uphill battle, the governments don't care, the ISPs don't care, the platforms don't care, the banks don't care, even the buyers don't care.


Explaining even basic economics to people with preconceived notions is a futile exercise.

Therefore I am only asking (again) what are you doing about it, instead of this sterile bitching and moaning against private companies while praising authoritarian leaders and wannabe dictators?
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 12, 2021, 03:18
Therefore I am only asking (again) what are you doing about it

Me ? I'm fully accepting the harsh reality of stock and PODs.

I'm improving my skills in order to produce expensive artsy products, i want to become a real artists selling in art galleries, micro/macro stock  doesn't make any financial sense anymore while prints/merch/PODs at least give me a lot of freedom especially on the pricing.

Anyone can shoot stock nowadays and that's why it's worth nothing, either we raise the bar or we go home.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 14, 2021, 05:50
So back to my question. How do I find these people on Etsy, do I have to go through every listing?

Etsy marketplace is not flooded like stock agencies. Usually a simple keyword only have a few pages of listings. So, for my case, I try to search for the keyword of my bestseller and browse through the listings.

Thanks, I may try later. Generally my work isn't attractive enough to steal.  ;)

For the rest of this, we have a lost in the translation thread where it's not a conversation at all, the answers are ignoring the original points, even when quoted. I'm giving up.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 14, 2021, 08:40
Here is the reply from another honest thief:

My name is xxxx, I'm writing you regarding the Notice of Intellectual Property Infringement that I received from Etsy from you. I'm really sorry for this situation as I never know that I can't use those photos for my prints and you need to know that I never wanted to cheat anyone or fraud! I really cherish my shop reputation and I wanted to know if there is an opportunity to cooperate with you? Could you please clarify, how much will cost the distribution rights for your photos?

Bottom line: it works! For now, Etsy is free from all my stolen photos.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 14, 2021, 14:51
... and another one:

My License is really not extended commercial.
I really can't use photography for production.

Please accept my apologies.

You can write to me directly if you notice a violation on my part and I will remove the photos immediately! Since I'm not the only one working with the store, I also have design mockups. Although this is my responsibility!
The photos you complained about will never be uploaded again!

Thanks for your patience and understanding.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on June 14, 2021, 22:41
I saw many people use my artworks in their merchandise products (stickers, mugs, scratch cards, etc) at Etsy. And I wrote to them to check if they have an Extended License for them.

All of them do not have Extended License. Some of them thought they have it, but they actually bought the wrong license. The honest and good will then proceed to buy the Extended License from me... usually they will buy even more artworks (Extended License) than the existing one. The lousy one will just remove the listing. The worst one will pretend they didn't do anything wrong and dare me to report (which I did).

Is all good. Is not as complicated as you thought it might be. All of this translate to instant reward.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 14, 2021, 23:16
I saw many people use my artworks in their merchandise products (stickers, mugs, scratch cards, etc) at Etsy. And I wrote to them to check if they have an Extended License for them.

All of them do not have Extended License. Some of them thought they have it, but they actually bought the wrong license. The honest and good will then proceed to buy the Extended License from me... usually they will buy even more artworks (Extended License) than the existing one. The lousy one will just remove the listing. The worst one will pretend they didn't do anything wrong and dare me to report (which I did).

Is all good. Is not as complicated as you thought it might be. All of this translate to instant reward.

What do you do if some guy shamelessly claims that he made my photo 32 years ago? LOL. He refused to share a higher rez photo where the identical details would have been even more obvious, like cloud patterns in the sky, etc. He countered my DMCA report.

Etsy says that if I don't follow with a legal action they will re-instate that listing after 10 days.
I wrote them back saying that I'm 100% certain that the photo is mine, asking them to not re-instate it.

Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: changingsky on June 14, 2021, 23:35
Maybe @MatHayward can clarify the Extended License is grating Etsy sellers the right to sell prints.

Please refer to the license details page here for allowable use with an Extended license: https://stock.adobe.com/license-terms#extendedLicenses

thank you,

Mat
What is this? Why Adobe forced to use a language which they want? Why i cannot use English? Please stop with this stupid policy, let people select languages which they need! Why i was redirected to your russian site? No button to change the language. If i am chinese i cannot use English? Edit: quick fix for this - use another browser.
Matt, this is not good - if something doesn't work, there is no normal way to change the language. Should be an old style dropdown list. It is not first time happening at Adobe. Accidental cookies, maybe but this is not an excuse for such policy.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Justanotherphotographer on June 15, 2021, 03:15


What do you do if some guy shamelessly claims that he made my photo 32 years ago? LOL. He refused to share a higher rez photo where the identical details would have been even more obvious, like cloud patterns in the sky, etc. He countered my DMCA report.

Etsy says that if I don't follow with a legal action they will re-instate that listing after 10 days.
I wrote them back saying that I'm 100% certain that the photo is mine, asking them to not re-instate it.

Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.

It is very frustrating. Some Etsy sellers have found out they can just dispute the DMCA. It really isn't practical to take them to court. What does work though is to let other people know about the infringing shop and get as many copyright holders to complain about their work as possible. Etsy will eventually take down the whole store regardless.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: leremy on June 15, 2021, 07:45


What do you do if some guy shamelessly claims that he made my photo 32 years ago? LOL. He refused to share a higher rez photo where the identical details would have been even more obvious, like cloud patterns in the sky, etc. He countered my DMCA report.

Etsy says that if I don't follow with a legal action they will re-instate that listing after 10 days.
I wrote them back saying that I'm 100% certain that the photo is mine, asking them to not re-instate it.

Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.

It is very frustrating. Some Etsy sellers have found out they can just dispute the DMCA. It really isn't practical to take them to court. What does work though is to let other people know about the infringing shop and get as many copyright holders to complain about their work as possible. Etsy will eventually take down the whole store regardless.

Yep, hence we all need to be a little pro-active in this endeavor. If good men like us didn't do anything, then this kind of behavior will spread like a pandemic.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Uncle Pete on June 15, 2021, 09:42


What do you do if some guy shamelessly claims that he made my photo 32 years ago? LOL. He refused to share a higher rez photo where the identical details would have been even more obvious, like cloud patterns in the sky, etc. He countered my DMCA report.

Etsy says that if I don't follow with a legal action they will re-instate that listing after 10 days.
I wrote them back saying that I'm 100% certain that the photo is mine, asking them to not re-instate it.

Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.

It is very frustrating. Some Etsy sellers have found out they can just dispute the DMCA. It really isn't practical to take them to court. What does work though is to let other people know about the infringing shop and get as many copyright holders to complain about their work as possible. Etsy will eventually take down the whole store regardless.

Yep, hence we all need to be a little pro-active in this endeavor. If good men like us didn't do anything, then this kind of behavior will spread like a pandemic.

Good advise from all, report, report. I'm enjoying the honest thief quotes. I really think many of these people just don't have any idea of the laws or artists rights. I mean the ones beyond those that do and are just ignoring the laws, while they can make some money.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 07:16
Yep, hence we all need to be a little pro-active in this endeavor. If good men like us didn't do anything, then this kind of behavior will spread like a pandemic.

Oh well, just yesterday i've seen prints/merch of Keith Haring, Wahrol, and Basquiat sold on amazon and other PODs, as low as 5$ for stickers or socks and as high as 300$ for big prints.

Now, there are specialized agencies dealing with licensing of those artists for Merch and i don't think these gangs of dropshippers have paid for it, the Keith Haring Foundation has its own licencing page on their site and they seem to deal only with big brands, same for the Andy Warhol Foundation and many other famous artists represented by art galleries.

If they're not moving a finger about all this, who will ?

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 07:23
Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.

Copytrack won't listen as well if the thief is based in a third world country, moreover you probably haven't registered your photos to the US copyright office (copyright.gov), and what about the photo in question, do you own the RAW file or it was just shot as JPG ?

Etsy legally isn't even obliged to give you an answer or to deal too much with all this, the DMCA full covers their as-s, so ...
Their remarks are correct, either you sue the thief or it's none of their business, actually if the thief is selling a lot more than you they could wisely kick YOU out of their platform.



Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 07:30
... and another one:

My License is really not extended commercial.
I really can't use photography for production.

Please accept my apologies.

You can write to me directly if you notice a violation on my part and I will remove the photos immediately! Since I'm not the only one working with the store, I also have design mockups. Although this is my responsibility!
The photos you complained about will never be uploaded again!

Thanks for your patience and understanding.


I don't think they're honest but if you browse the many t-shirt/merch forums like https://www.t-shirtforums.com/ there's a ton of discussions about "where to find free design for POD/merch" and they seem to really know nothing about licensing and copyright in general, it's a digital wild west, all they know is they bought expensive printers and now they must make money no matter what.


 
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 16, 2021, 08:48
Any such experiences? I thinking about filing a claim with Copytrack, if Etsy doesn't listen.

Copytrack won't listen as well if the thief is based in a third world country, moreover you probably haven't registered your photos to the US copyright office (copyright.gov), and what about the photo in question, do you own the RAW file or it was just shot as JPG ?

Etsy legally isn't even obliged to give you an answer or to deal too much with all this, the DMCA full covers their as-s, so ...
Their remarks are correct, either you sue the thief or it's none of their business, actually if the thief is selling a lot more than you they could wisely kick YOU out of their platform.

Using your language, the seller is from a "first world country" and I have the original RAW images, of course.

Copytrack worked with me and chased some famous photographer who was selling his worldwide photography tours using my photos. While it was very wrong from an ethical point of view, legally he was ok since he purchased licenses from SS. He apologized and blamed his website administrator for the "error".

The other thing I just realized, it that some Etsy sellers are purchasing and reselling Prints made by others who may or may not have the right licenses. In this case, it's harder to go to the source and check if the printing shop has the correct licenses. indeed.


Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 10:32
Copytrack worked with me and chased some famous photographer who was selling his worldwide photography tours using my photos. While it was very wrong from an ethical point of view, legally he was ok since he purchased licenses from SS. He apologized and blamed his website administrator for the "error".

The other thing I just realized, it that some Etsy sellers are purchasing and reselling Prints made by others who may or may not have the right licenses. In this case, it's harder to go to the source and check if the printing shop has the correct licenses. indeed.

Hahaha it's getting funny, a travel photographer using unlicensed travel images from somebody else :)
Why i'm not surprised ...

Etsy "arbitrage" ? Yes, and it also happens on Fiverr and other platforms, as i said already it's a total sh-itshow and a digital wild west, nothing is going to change until new draconian laws are enacted worldwide to protect digital artists from theft and copyright infringement.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 16, 2021, 10:47
Copytrack worked with me and chased some famous photographer who was selling his worldwide photography tours using my photos. While it was very wrong from an ethical point of view, legally he was ok since he purchased licenses from SS. He apologized and blamed his website administrator for the "error".

The other thing I just realized, it that some Etsy sellers are purchasing and reselling Prints made by others who may or may not have the right licenses. In this case, it's harder to go to the source and check if the printing shop has the correct licenses. indeed.

Hahaha it's getting funny, a travel photographer using unlicensed travel images from somebody else :)
Why i'm not surprised ...

Etsy "arbitrage" ? Yes, and it also happens on Fiverr and other platforms, as i said already it's a total sh-itshow and a digital wild west, nothing is going to change until new draconian laws are enacted worldwide to protect digital artists from theft and copyright infringement.

No. As I said, that internet celebrity was using legally licensed photos from SS, to promote his photography skills and sell his tours.

But I am curious about one thing: what are you trying to achieve here by trying so hard to convince this community that any fight against thieves is futile?

I'm asking because, as someone pointed out to me, in your very first post made on this forum, you were looking for free extended licenses exactly for selling "Prints and Merch on PODs" (see attached).
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: farbled on June 16, 2021, 12:01

No. As I said, that internet celebrity was using legally licensed photos from SS, to promote his photography skills and sell his tours.

But I am curious about one thing: what are you trying to achieve here by trying so hard to convince this community that any fight against thieves is futile?

I'm asking because, as someone pointed out to me, in your very first post made on this forum, you were looking for free extended licenses exactly for selling "Prints and Merch on PODs" (see attached).

Ooh plot twist.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 17:44
No. As I said, that internet celebrity was using legally licensed photos from SS, to promote his photography skills and sell his tours.

But I am curious about one thing: what are you trying to achieve here by trying so hard to convince this community that any fight against thieves is futile?

I'm asking because, as someone pointed out to me, in your very first post made on this forum, you were looking for free extended licenses exactly for selling "Prints and Merch on PODs" (see attached).

Wrong, i'm seeking cheap extended licenses to make complex "composites" and it can get easily unaffordable unless i find a way to keep costs low.
I would never buy a single image to resell on PODs, i've already my own photos to deal with.

As for the internet celebrity, the irony is a famous photographer is not using his own photos to promote his product on his own site, this is the worst thing a travel photographer can do but again i'm not surprised.



Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 16, 2021, 17:59

No. As I said, that internet celebrity was using legally licensed photos from SS, to promote his photography skills and sell his tours.

But I am curious about one thing: what are you trying to achieve here by trying so hard to convince this community that any fight against thieves is futile?

I'm asking because, as someone pointed out to me, in your very first post made on this forum, you were looking for free extended licenses exactly for selling "Prints and Merch on PODs" (see attached).

Ooh plot twist.

There's no plot twist :

As an example i've drawn the sketch of a composite where i need a background with an erupting volcano, two lions, a semi nude girl of a specific ethnicity in a specific position and style i don't have in my photo archive, other 3-4 small objects i can't shoot at the moment.

What should i do ? take an airplane to shoot the lions in africa, the volcano in iceland, and another airplane to shoot the girl in exotic distant countries, or just buy all of them as stock images ?

If possible i'll use stock, at the cheapest price, otherwise i'll have to ditch this project or as a last option use pics from Unsplash or Pixabay with the risk of using images that have no model release or were outright stolen from stock agencies or whatever.

Now, i could risk it for small objects but not for the central object (the girl, which definetely needs a model release).
Sure,i could just shoot my girlfriend and case closed, but then the whole idea behind the composite wouldn't make sense.

Even mixing and matching EL stock images with small CC0 images and using heavy filtering and editing it's still a "derivative work" unless you own 100% of the licenses, and you're stuck in a gray area legally at least in europe while in the US you could get away with "fair use" somehow.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Zero Talent on June 17, 2021, 12:05
I saw many people use my artworks in their merchandise products (stickers, mugs, scratch cards, etc) at Etsy. And I wrote to them to check if they have an Extended License for them.

All of them do not have Extended License. Some of them thought they have it, but they actually bought the wrong license. The honest and good will then proceed to buy the Extended License from me... usually they will buy even more artworks (Extended License) than the existing one.

This is exactly what just happened this morning. Someone showed me the licenses he purchased from DepositPhotos. But these were Standard licenses. I explained that these are not valid for the purpose.
He apologized and immediately after he purchased Extended licenses. See the attachment.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: farbled on June 17, 2021, 14:24
There's no plot twist :

As an example i've drawn the sketch of a composite where i need a background with an erupting volcano, two lions, a semi nude girl of a specific ethnicity in a specific position and style i don't have in my photo archive, other 3-4 small objects i can't shoot at the moment.

What should i do ? take an airplane to shoot the lions in africa, the volcano in iceland, and another airplane to shoot the girl in exotic distant countries, or just buy all of them as stock images ?

If possible i'll use stock, at the cheapest price, otherwise i'll have to ditch this project or as a last option use pics from Unsplash or Pixabay with the risk of using images that have no model release or were outright stolen from stock agencies or whatever.

Now, i could risk it for small objects but not for the central object (the girl, which definetely needs a model release).
Sure,i could just shoot my girlfriend and case closed, but then the whole idea behind the composite wouldn't make sense.

Even mixing and matching EL stock images with small CC0 images and using heavy filtering and editing it's still a "derivative work" unless you own 100% of the licenses, and you're stuck in a gray area legally at least in europe while in the US you could get away with "fair use" somehow.

All I got from that is there is a level of acceptable risk for you to use photos you may or may not have the rights to.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: KellyHeadrick on June 17, 2021, 14:35
https://www.etsy.com/legal/policy/reselling/239324376512 (https://www.etsy.com/legal/policy/reselling/239324376512)

Hello, I have been following this thread closely as I have had to report people on Etsy, redbubble, society six, and flickr as well. I did a little digging at Etsy because one of the thieves said that they bought a license through Adobe. According to Etsy's handbook, reselling is not allowed period. So anyone selling any work from someone else is breaking the rules, license or no.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 17, 2021, 15:18
https://www.etsy.com/legal/policy/reselling/239324376512 (https://www.etsy.com/legal/policy/reselling/239324376512)

Hello, I have been following this thread closely as I have had to report people on Etsy, redbubble, society six, and flickr as well. I did a little digging at Etsy because one of the thieves said that they bought a license through Adobe. According to Etsy's handbook, reselling is not allowed period. So anyone selling any work from someone else is breaking the rules, license or no.

Reselling is not allowed only in the Handmade category, it's ok everywhere else.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 17, 2021, 15:44
All I got from that is there is a level of acceptable risk for you to use photos you may or may not have the rights to.

In the end i will ditch the composites i can't assemble with parts of my own photos, it's useless to waste money with EL licenses or trying your luck using CC0/PublicDomain images of dubious origin.



Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: KellyHeadrick on June 17, 2021, 15:45
Yes, that is where my photos were listed. The only other categories, I believe, are vintage and craft supplies.
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: Stocksaurus on June 17, 2021, 16:22
Yes, that is where my photos were listed. The only other categories, I believe, are vintage and craft supplies.

Well, good luck then.
As shown already in this long discussion you will have to fight thieves on a full time basis, in the meantime they're making sales and giving nothing back apart saying they're sorry when they get caught.

Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: duns123 on July 03, 2021, 09:19
I was selling some handmade items on Etsy got a few sales until early this year but they suddenly stopped. I checked was shocked that someone had copied me same product color style everything. What can u do?
Title: Re: Crazy number of thieves at Etsy
Post by: stockart on February 04, 2024, 07:31
In case anyone wants to go the DMCA route here's the form:

https://www.etsy.com/legal/ip/report (https://www.etsy.com/legal/ip/report)

You can report multiple listings in one go

Thank you thats exactly what i needed, found lots of my stolen clips on etsy again.