03 Jul Do You Really Want to Steal Other People’s Content?
OK, it’s not the first time, and I guess it won’t be the last. Some friggin’ slug has gone and swiped a whole bunch of text from one of my articles and used it as his own – incredible!
And guess who gets penalised for it? Me!
This was from an article that I published back in ’04 / ’05 (not sure when) and I’d pretty much lost track of it until recently. When I found it again I thought OK, time to get this up in some of the article directories and see if I can draw some more mileage from it. And of it goes …
Only to get blocked at the first step because search results show that it has “identical content” to material already published. Huh? I’m left wondering how that is possible.
After enough research I find that yes, some slug *has* published chunks of this article as his own. Normally I wouldn’t give two-hoots, but the article directory in mind (naturally) suspends my account as a thief and a liar – aargh!!!
Finally I get it back together, and am able to show that the “offending article” had also been previously published correctly under my name on other websites, and so my account is re-instated… but why? Because some tool was too damn lazy to write his own material or get someone else to do it for him.
Here’s the real kicker… there are literally tens of thousands, probably tens of millions of pages of material out there that can legally and ethically be re-published with signatory of who wrote it – how hard can this be?
The question to be asked here is how far are you willing to go to try and make yourself “look good” on the internet? You know, we’ve probably all done it a few times with images… and how about our sales copy “swipe files”? Hmm. That’s a big one isn’t it (I’m know I’m not 100% innocent there).
Maybe it’s time that we became accountable for what we do Online. Just because there are recalcitrants out there who will take your stuff and “pretend” it’s theirs doesn’t mean we have to.
As leaders in the net marketing field we must stand TALL!!
PS. Notice that I’ve elected not to publish this guys website and “name and shame” him. Standing tall means doing more than just playing by schoolyard bully tactics.
(Question) – What are your thoughts on the way this goes on Online?
