My Work is Famous – but stolen!
I’m furious & really sad… I am losing faith in mankind. Yup, I stumbled on the fact that many ‘stores’ are apparently selling my product! They are scamming buyers by using my stolen pictures! It seems my work is famous – but stolen! ‘How dare you! (New updates)
My Precious Ghoul and Witch
Remember these?! They are one of my favourite concrete projects that I made & it must have proliferated the internet. Those are my photos, my steps and my watermark, but that has not stopped the thieves. A recent count (2024) has shown that there are 0ver 220 stores selling what looks like my sculptures!
If you are on the internet you have probably been scammed or at least been tempted to buy something. There are ads everywhere, and google plans to show you what you searched for, it’s not a coincidence. I do shop on the ‘net, quite often so yes, I too have been scammed.
I have been quite sad lately since my lil pup passed away so I have lost a bit of my usual drive and that leads to some mindless surfing on the net. When I googled ‘witch ghoul light‘. I just about fell out of my chair… (And that could be a problem for those new knees that I’ll be getting!)
It looks like I am selling millions of my sculptures all over, Amazon, eEbay, individual sites and even Walmart!
Third Party sellers
How can this happen??? You need to be careful… All the major selling sites have third party sellers. That means that the site owner is at the mercy of the third party seller to be honest in their product. There’s a lot of odd stuff going on under the surface. Also a company can have many stores/names all over the ‘net. It’s impossible to find contacts that work or get a reply. You need to check who the seller is & where they are shipping from. Individual sites are even riskier since they are not trying to keep their reputation clean.
Yes, there are ways to complain, to file ‘Amazon Infringement reports’, or Walmart Intellectual property violations for the use of my stolen pictures.
Spend your time filling in product numbers, contacts for hours… and hours. Then you get some form-letter email replies. What happens? Well, they may take the page down and then wait to see of there is more complaints… I’d have to hire a bunch of people to police this. Just like the ‘5 Minute Crafts’ they eventually sneak some new infringements like we sneak cookies out of the pantry when no one is looking.
No where on this site does it show what you will actually get. All the pictures are my sculptures, not depicting their product.
They even have the nerve to remove my watermark, albeit badly!
One of the most notorious places that these fakes are peddled is through Facebook ads. Check out this story from Buzzfeed. The one thing I will note; is that the scammers do like to pick the best stuff; so I suppose I should feel flattered. ‘But the proper way would have been to ask permission to make them, permission to use my design, let alone MY PHOTOS!
So many artists are upset that there is now a Facebook group: Facebook Ad Scambusters! It ‘outs’ the scam ads alerting would-be buyers.
I’ll admit that my concrete work is all my own unique designs and not some regurgitation from the ‘net since I foremost pride myself as an artist. I also teach in an art college and know that inspiration & reference comes from the internet so easily. ‘But I draw the line on blatant exact use of others images! I am so shocked that these companies believe that using my unique pictures as their own is acceptable.
I know it’s pretty easy to snipe images off of the web, screen shot them. ‘They’ even cut them out of my picture and place them in different backgrounds.
There are only one of each of sculptures that exist, as I am looking at them right now. They are HUGE, about 18″ tall, made of concrete & quite heavy. The details are fine from the handy-work of the dipped fabric.
So what do you get?
There were a few sellers who actually included a ‘real’ picture of what would arrive by mail (if it does). Read closely; these are ‘fit-in-your-hand’ tiny! Mine are concrete, and their’s are resin (or plastic). There may be some battery light inside.
One of my readers informed me of all this a while back since they were fooled that it was actually my designs being sold… I reassured that I could not make these to ship, especially for the prices stated. It was confusing since they used my stolen pictures.
Once they arrived they looked like this. (thanks, not everyone likes to admit that they got scammed) Maybe they are worth the little money. I try to imagine someone somewhere trying to copy exactly from my pictures… and I’d say they lack the true character that mine have.
Such sad little imitations! I am sure it’s not the first and surely won’t be the last, however it leaves a really bad taste in the mouth for future projects. I share my projects freely – which I am starting to question.
Come on, give me some faith in mankind.
UPDATE: Copyrights have been filed and I am patiently waiting to see what the outcome will be to a new process to stop further use of my images, wish me luck! ‘And please do not buy what you thought was my ghoul or witch!
Hi Barb,
I always enjoy your emails. This is being done everywhere. I would recommend you take a look at Patreon. It’s a site that I like & use. I enjoy & pay for 3 artists & their instructional content. Plus it will bring income to you. It will help along with watermarking.
Sue R.
I am aware of Patreon but the small tests of paid content did not come through in any way. It seems everyone wants free. I sometimes chuckle that I’ll pull down the site and just sell PDF’s! But I do have so much positive feedback, just better to be making that looking on the’net!
Dear Barb, I am also an artisan and I work alone in my laboratory in Italy: unfortunately my photos and my texts of my handmade products have also been copied and published on fake sites with absurd prices that scam the final customer, ruining the my good name. It’s not right! A lot of time, effort, intuitions, planning, tests, passion, love for beautiful and unique things! All wasted by criminals who steal and take advantage of the work of others! My trademark is registered and yet … they use it as a keyword to attract illegal traffic! How disgusting!
Oh wow! It is crazy isn’t it!? I hope you get some resolution and also don’t lose your drive! Best of luck!
Thanks Barb, I will follow your lead and write articles to warn my customers and the public about the scam and the danger of buying fakes. HAPPY LIFE MY DEAR ONE! Be strong!!
Das ist schon mehr als dreist. Ich bin entsetzt, obwohl ich auch schon gesehen habe, dass einige meiner Designs nachgemacht und verkauft wurden. Aber ich habe immer Anzeige erstattet. Das ist geistiges Eigentum.
Jedoch ist nicht jeder ein Dieb und die meisten sind ehrlich, das soll man nicht vergessen, auch wenn es noch so ärgerlich ist.
“That’s more than bold. I’m appalled, even though I’ve seen some of my designs being copied and sold. But I always filed a complaint. This is intellectual property.
However, not everyone is a thief and most are honest, this should not be forgotten, no matter how annoying it is.”
_____________
I have filed a few dozen complaints… they are really annoying as they always say they need more info. I will get over it… but I didn’t want my readers to think it was my stores.
Barb I am so saddened that your photos are being pirated. Scumbags! I love your work and it is down right maddening that someone would do this. Hope you can catch them and prosecute them.
Thanks! I consulted an intellectual property lawyer and they said it’s very difficult since it’s many countries away! Even if I am in the right it’s difficult to prosecute them. Making it public may help!
I learned recently not to click on online ads as they often hide computer virus codes in the picture. Is there any way you could hide code in the pictures on your website that would pixilate or otherwise destroy the image if someone tried to use it elsewhere? I have no idea how to do that, but presumably any average teenager would know how to these days?
I would also like to add my condolences on your loss, I am truly sorry to hear about your beloved pupper.
I have also seen many of your items being sold on Etsy, your concrete peepers and the smiles, as well as small resin spooks like the ones you mentioned.
You have inspired me so much that just this week I made my very own step spook and have made some teeth for my own smiling rocks. I want to thank you for sharing your art and I hope unauthorized use of your intellectual property stops very soon.
Dearest Barb,
I think from all these people responding to. you that you can feel the love coming your way but for the loss of your pup and the loss of your creativity. Don’t give up on people – you also can mail yourself photos of your work so you have a “timestamp” to prove these are YOURS. The watermarks on photos are easy to remove with Photoshop so people with no sense of honor will do this in a heartbeat. Take some time to rest and restore yourself – you probably need a break in order to refill your creative cup. We all are your friends and appreciate your talents and heart. God bless.
Ki in West Virginia
I am SO very sorry for what has happened. I know exactly how you are feeling. My son had a piece of music stolen. The thief has been making money on it for 10 years. NOW, Amazon is making a series out of the books where my son got his inspiration for the music. They are talking to both my son & the thief. If they use the thief, they will be receiving stolen goods, but we don’t have the money to fight it. There must be a special place in hell for those who use others.
Have your lawyer send them a bill.
I would but figuring where to send is the problem. Each points the finger somewhere else.
Oh Barb,
Thank you so much for your beautiful work! I am so sorry to hear about the theft and also about your little puppy! Losing your pal hurts more than anything else….
We have a little farm stand and folks steal from us too. It’s so sad that the world operates like this much too often.
Please take care and know you have given me many inspirational moments and one day I hope to act on some of them!!
Thank you and a huge big hug, Sue
Wow, really? I hope they feel awful about it!