How to Catch Content Thieves
Do you scroll through your feed or explore page and find a piece of content that you LOVE....possibly because, um, it's yours?
It happens to the best of us, content thieves are all around. Don't get me wrong, we love to create content that people love, relate to, and want to repost, but stealing is a different level. We spend a lot of time crafting our work and for someone to repost without asking and/or crediting us is a hard thing to watch. So, what do we do about content thieves?
When you noticed someone else taking the credits for your work or posting without permission, there are some steps you can take to try to solve the issue:
1.) First and foremost, know your rights! When you post original content on social media platforms, it immediately falls under copyright law. However, fair use and infringement laws come into play as well. We would recommend checking out Moz's article regarding fair use to learn more about this subject!
2.) If it does comply with the laws of copyright and fair use, you have to decide if you'd like to take further action. If yes, keep reading!
3.) Screenshot and save the evidence. If further legal action needs to be pursued, you'll always have that evidence to go back on if they remove it.
4.) Email (if there is one on their website or profile) or direct message them and ask them to either remove it, or give you your due credit. Make sure you don't delete these messages and save or screenshot this as well!
5.) If you haven't gotten a response in a reasonable timeframe, you can contact the platform directly to discuss removing it from their side. If you have proof that the work is yours and they posted without permission, you should have no issues getting it removed once a claim is filed.
6.) If you have issues getting it removed with the platform or if they continue to steal your content, you can seek further legal action. Look for "Copyright Lawyers" near you that specialize in this field to help you strategize and work on next steps.
On the other side - if you are ever accidentally the content thief or are thinking about reposting someone, always, always, always (1) Take it down until you (2) ask for permission, (3) tag them, mention them, @ them, anything you have to do to let others know that it is not your original work, it's theirs!
On our Social Savvy Collective Instagram, we love to repost other creators because there are tons of social media managers, coaches, entrepreneurs, and small business owners, that are great at what they do and deserve the hype!
However, we ALWAYS ask through a DM first and be sure to give them the proper credit in the actual post, as well. We have had a few people say no when we ask to repost, whether it's because they want their work to stay on their page or they have been burned by content thieves in the past, we respect their decision 100% and we never have any hard feelings because it's their choice to make about their work!
*Please note that this article does not contain legal advice, only suggestions based on experience. You should consult a lawyer for legal consulting while doing through this issue.*
