Piracy

[Cupara]

I just found out a paid mod I sale is illegally being distributed on another site. Anyone know what I can do about this? I've never been in this position before so I'm not sure if I should seek legal counsel right away or try to handle it on my own.

Thanks to anyone who helps out.

 

[ENF]

Your best bet is to find out the host and send a cease and desist order.

Find the IP address of the site hosting the illegal content, look up their WHOIS information for the IP block owner and send a DMCA/Abuse complaint to which ever email is registered as their contact point (there is sometimes a DMCA contact and a separate abuse contact). If you can determine the specific host besides the IP block owner, that may be a better way. Otherwise the IP block owner will just forward on the complaint to the inhabitants of the offending IP address. Include as many details as possible so that they may identify the site in question quickly.

You can probably write a request yourself or if you have legal counsel retained, that would be better. From that point, it will just be a matter of how much money you want to throw at the problem.

That's the most basic info I can offer you.

 

[Cupara]

Thanks ENF I'll talk with my business manager and get him on top of things.

 

[Brett Peters]

Good luck Steve, I would be interested in how things pan out.

 

[MGSteve]

Lets just hope the server is in a country that respects copyright. If its on a Russian server, you've probably got next to no chance

 

[Floris]

Contact Howard =D

 

[Slavik]

I just found out a paid mod I sale is illegally being distributed on another site. Anyone know what I can do about this? I've never been in this position before so I'm not sure if I should seek legal counsel right away or try to handle it on my own.

Thanks to anyone who helps out.

Pm me which site it is, I have the registered information of one of the more "popular" illegal sites out there.

 

[Anthony Parsons]

Lets just hope the server is in a country that respects copyright. If its on a Russian server, you've probably got next to no chance

Yep... countries with stringent laws, quick action. Countries without strict laws, don't give a toss. Challenging sometimes...

 

[Cupara]

So far the country of the server is the US so I have a chance.

 

[Floris]

You can represent yourself in a DMCA notification. Follow the DMCA notification letter protocol and link directly to the offensive material, and the original source. Say you're representing yourself as author of your own work and that based on the host's ToS (quote clause) that hosting copyrighted files unauthorized is not permitted. And request them to enforce their ToS against their customer; After requesting the customer to remove it.

Don't say you WILL take further action if they don't comply, always mention you will consider it. That way you can actually consider it.

 

[Cupara]

Thanks Floris, I will do that.

 

[Anthony Parsons]

I don't even use DMCA protocols when contacting server companies, I use their own terms and conditions, which already comply with country / state laws, which you will find the specific act / infringement within their TOC in which to use for arguing your case to instigate immediate action.

So far, its worked every single time, and swiftly... because its 'their' TOC which is brought into it. Every hosting company will have an abuse email listed for priority contact... use that.

 

[John]

Sorry to hear. All I can say is if one is giving it away and you shut them down, 5 others will pop up to take their place...just a fact of life on the interwebs. Have fun.

 

[Cupara]

Yep and I just revoked the license of the person who bought it. They used a fake name and fake email so I checked their paypal they used and it didn't even match the name they provided when registering. So maybe that will shut them down for future releases.

 

[Shelley]

Sorry to hear. All I can say is if one is giving it away and you shut them down, 5 others will pop up to take their place...just a fact of life on the interwebs. Have fun.

Yeah, I learned today that a style I created got ripped off by some warez site and I just had to lol. I've spent (in the past) many hours getting resources removed but soon learned as you said john you eliminate 1 and 500 pot belly

's pop up.

 

[Cupara]

Yeah, I learned today that a style I created got ripped off by some warez site and I just had to lol. I've spent (in the past) many hours getting resources removed but soon learned as you said john you eliminate 1 and 500 pot belly View attachment 18843 's pop up.

Oh yeah I heard about that and Lisa was pissed. I'm pissed cuz that same site has ripped my mods and I'm looking to see if my style on my college site is ripped.

 

[Cupara]

OMG, they ripped my Clear Blue style and right above your's Shelley.

 

[Kevin]

Oh yeah I heard about that and Lisa was pissed. I'm pissed cuz that same site has ripped my mods and I'm looking to see if my style on my college site is ripped.

If you're pissed now, just wait until you start seeing all of that hard-work you've been doing for XFA showing up on the pirate sites.

The worst part is how stupid some of the people downloading from those sites are. There are a number of free vB mods out there that have been released on pirate sites with the comment that "call home has been removed" but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they don't have any such code. So what code exactly has been modified? Instead of downloading a copy for free from the official support there are idiots who think they are getting away with something by downloading it off of a pirate site. Yeah, they're getting away with something alright... they're getting away with installing on their site free apps that have had malicious code added to it. Way to go!

 

[Shelley]

OMG, they ripped my Clear Blue style and right above your's Shelley.

ROFLMAO

Edit: Azhria didn't say which site it was (I never asked tbh) so I'm not sure which site your referring to.

 

[Cupara]

If you're pissed now, just wait until you start seeing all of that hard-work you've been doing for XFA showing up on the pirate sites.

The worst part is how stupid some of the people downloading from those sites are. There are a number of free vB mods out there that have been released on pirate sites with the comment that "call home has been removed" but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they don't have any such code. So what code exactly has been modified? Instead of downloading a copy for free from the official support there are idiots who think they are getting away with something by downloading it off of a pirate site. Yeah, they're getting away with something alright... they're getting away with installing on their site free apps that have had malicious code added to it. Way to go!

Oh geez, don't tell me that. A lot of work is going in to XFA. I plan to implement some "call home" code that if no license is input and matches will kill the system.

ROFLMAO

Edit: Azhria didn't say which site it was (I never asked tbh) so I'm not sure which site your referring to.

The Urban site. LOL