Plagiarism Related Questions

[fherrera]

I'm new to IM, and I've just started getting my articles out there.

1. I've noticed other sites posting my articles, but the resource box is sized down to where it is unreadable. I still get the backlink(from a low PR site), but next to no click throughs to my page. Are these sites allowed to do this, and are they still complying with the article directories ToC?

2. Today I found one of my articles posted on another site with the resource box missing. This is not benefiting me in any way. What can I do?

[Brad Gosse]

1. No

2. Send DMCA notices assuming you have proof you write the articles.

[Lee Ruleman]

I have come across many of my articles posted on sites with an abbreviated version of my resource box. This really irks me because most of the article directories and Ezinearticles specifically (which I use the most) state that the resource box must remain in tact.

On sites where my resource box is abbreviated I send an message to the article directory listing the site. How much that actually helps I don't know. On the occasions where I find my article without a resource box at all I notify the webmaster (if there is a link to do so) that they are using my article and request that it be either removed or my resource box (included in the email) be added. To be totally honest this works a small percentage of times, usually I don't get a response and the article is neither removed or my box added.

The article directories really have no power to enforce their rules since all someone has to do is go to the directory and search by topic to pull up an article. They just then copy and paste the article itself.

The only recourse that you might have is to engage an attorney and go through the legal route, but that is expensive and really not worth the effort or cost.

I know that this is not what you wanted to hear, but we article marketers are kind of stuck with the problem.

Lee

[fherrera]

Originally Posted by Brad Gosse

1. No

2. Send DMCA notices assuming you have proof you write the articles.

What type of proof do I need? I submitted it to the article directory with my email, and I have the original article, and variations of it on my HD. Is this the proof I need?

[MikeGriffith]

That has happened to me, including someone taking my article and putting their name on it. I contact the site that posted the article and tell them what I want them to know. Than I contact the article directory and let them know what happened. Beyond that, I don't worry about it because it's not worth the attorney fees for a 400-word article. I just keep on writing articles and submitting them. Of course, if you have the time and resources to pursue it, then, by all means do it.

[CDawson]

Originally Posted by fherrera

What type of proof do I need? I submitted it to the article directory with my email, and I have the original article, and variations of it on my HD. Is this the proof I need?

If you can show the date the article was published on the article directory, that would probably be enough proof.

[HeySal]

If you have proof of writing - which sometimes if you can just prove posting before the other person did is enough - you send a cease and desist. If they don't acknowledge it, send one to their server. If they don't respond, start posting the cease and desist on social sites - and a note that it was sent to domain name - and server name with no response so are notifying them publicly. Make sure you have proof before you do that one both of writing the article and of the attempted contact.

To find out what is admissible proof, google copyright offices and read their info.

[crissanteiro]

That should not happen. If you are not getting any benefit at all, I would definitely ask the webmaster to remove your article. However, if it is in blogs with your resource box where it is getting exposure, that's different.

So, do what's best for you in each situation. If it benefits you, leave it. If it doesn't, ask to have it removed, or to insert your resource box.

[bgmacaw]

On #1, it depends on the TOS of the article directory they got it from. Most I've seen don't stipulate a particular CSS style be used. The styling of links and so forth will vary between sites and you have to expect that on some sites your articles will have deemphasized links of one type or another or that links will be injected by an ad program like Kontera.

In short, don't expect traffic from blogs and other sites that reuse your article. Just accept that your site is getting a backlink from it. For direct referral traffic from articles, you only should depend on the top 5 or so article directories to provide this. All others you should consider for SEO purposes only.

If they aren't showing your resource box then this is something you might want to pursue. Just remember though that your time may better be spent on writing more articles and improving your own sites rather than pursuing the occasional copyright violation case.

[netkid]

The best way to research this issue is to go to:

Copyscape - Search for Website Plagiarism and Duplicate Content Online

You enter the website URL that you have your original content and copyscape will find any and all other sites that may have "swiped" your content word for word. They also have a link at their homepage further talking about copyright infringement, etc.

Hope that helps,

Regards,

Bruce

[adamv]

Welcome to the club.

I've sent emails to the offending websites a number of times and only once did I get a response. The person apologized, included my links, and even asked my permission to subscribe to my articles.

Unfortunately, that was one time out of many. In the time it takes me to deal with one thief I could write several more articles. Most of the time, it's just not worth it to go after them.

I try to send a bunch of backlinks to my articles and get them ranking in the SERPs and try to make sure I out rank the thief's website.

[RB Riddick]

Originally Posted by fherrera

I've noticed other sites posting my articles, but the resource box is sized down to where it is unreadable....Are these sites allowed to do this, and are they still complying with the article directories ToC?

Hi fherrera,

I just read through the publisher TOS over at EzineArticles, and they do not explicitly state that the resource box text needs to be large enough to read clearly, or even as large as the rest of the article.

I think their TOS should include this somewhere (section 1.b.?); it might actually deter a few sneaky publishers.

Maybe someone with a connection at EZA can suggest this to them.

Riddick

[fherrera]

Originally Posted by bgmacaw

On #1, it depends on the TOS of the article directory they got it from. Most I've seen don't stipulate a particular CSS style be used. The styling of links and so forth will vary between sites and you have to expect that on some sites your articles will have deemphasized links of one type or another or that links will be injected by an ad program like Kontera.

In short, don't expect traffic from blogs and other sites that reuse your article. Just accept that your site is getting a backlink from it. For direct referral traffic from articles, you only should depend on the top 5 or so article directories to provide this. All others you should consider for SEO purposes only.

If they aren't showing your resource box then this is something you might want to pursue. Just remember though that your time may better be spent on writing more articles and improving your own sites rather than pursuing the occasional copyright violation case.

You're making alot of sense here. I think I will take the time to contact the site that has completely removed my resource box and see what happens. As far as the tiny resource boxes, I'll take it as a grain of salt and enjoy the crappy back link from a 0 PR site.

[fherrera]

Originally Posted by RB Riddick

Hi fherrera,

I just read through the publisher TOS over at EzineArticles, and they do not explicitly state that the resource box text needs to be large enough to read clearly, or even as large as the rest of the article.

I think their TOS should include this somewhere (section 1.b.?); it might actually deter a few sneaky publishers.

Maybe someone with a connection at EZA can suggest this to them.

Riddick

I agree. I can see where a webmaster may not want their traffic to click onto my squeeze page, but I personally feel that if they are using my article to make money on their site, they should give the contributing article writer(me) a chance to benefit as well. In a perfect world right. I know back links are important, but when they come from a site with a PR of 0 or 1, it's not really doing much for me. Oh well, I'll just keep plugging away.

[Kay King]

It's amazing how much this has changed in the past few years. When I first began article marketing (around 2002 or 2003) you seldom saw your article listed in a tricky way or your resource box removed.

It happened but it was, in my experience, rare. I had articles published on dozens of other sites and always the bio box was included. It was considered a big problem if the link in the bio was not kept as a live link.

Now there are so many who operate only on doing "what's best for me and what I want" with no concern for ethics or respect for others, it's almost expected to have your articles ripped off.

It stinks - but there are a lot of sorry characters online these days.

kay

[fherrera]

LOL

Here's what I did on the site that removed my resource box.

The site had a spot to post comments on the article so I just wrote this comment.
------------------------
Frank Daily on August 20th, 2009 at 5:34 am

I wrote this article, and I noticed that you forgot to add my resource box per articlebase’s ToC. I hope your readers find this article helpful, and I’ve taken the liberty to add the resource box for you below.

Quitting smoking is not an impossible task. There are all natural methods available that have helped people remain smoke free forever. If you’d like to, you can find more information HERE

Don’t forget to comment
----------------------
Of course all my links were intact

[acedalright]

I have this dozens of times, a couple of times they have completely claimed the article as their own and not included any reference whatsoever.

One was on an auto blog, where the comments weren't moderated so I left a comment.

Suffice to say it wouldn't have helped their cause.