Question
Hello, I am hoping that someone in this forum might be able to give me some advice. I have been away from the Internet since November, when my computer died. After buying a new computer and reconnecting to the Internet, I have discovered a fraud that is occurring on ebay. My husband is a professional artist and has been for thirty-five years. His work is expensive and sells in several galleries in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. Recently a friend told us that he had bought a painting on ebay, so when I reconnected, I typed in my husband's name and came up with one auction that is currently running and four closed auctions, although I did not find the auction that the friend had won. All five of the paintings that are/were being sold are not my husband's work. Although we ourselves have not been financially damaged, the buyers are being scammed, and people who might really be interested in his work, such as gallery owners, might see those hideous fakes and assume that they represent his work. The friend is going to bring the painting that he purchased to our house as soon as he returns to town from his spring break vacation. I was able to enlarge one of the images in a closed aution, and the signature appears to be my husband's, which means, I think, that the seller located a painting on the Internet and copied the signature, pasting it onto the image. I don't know how these things work. My husband's work generally sells in a range of betwen eight hundred dollars to fifty-four hundred dollars. These travesties are selling for anywhere fom twenty-five to sixty dollars. What, if anything, can we do about this? We would appreciate any help or advice. Thank you in advance.
Answer
Sorry for the problem you and your husband are experiencing.
While not immediately available to me, I'm sure other posters will be along shortly with eBay contact information and suggested approaches.
In addition to dealing with eBay there are other options including exploring this as a civil and/or criminal violation.
Do not contact the buyers of previous eBay listings at this time as eBay has some regulations concerning auction interference which could also impact your account if not handled through their staff.
Don't hesitate to continue to ask questions and ask for suggestions, here on here, regarding options.
There are users here who have first hand experience with their creative efforts being stolen and can share the productive options they found useful.
Answer
wow...this is a big problem
where to start, let me think
I am not sure ebya can do anything at this point, but there is lots YOU can and should do...
OK, first call your local police, rpeort the scam
then the FBI or whatever, some american posters will be along to help out on these names and numbers
Get over to eBay and get your hubby registered on that VERO program, NOW, first off, do not wait. Time to make the vero program do something real.
After you get him registered, shut down joe scammers aucitons....that is the only way I can see to combat him/her.
I am going to go holler at the other forum for artists help in copyrighting stuff....
Most of all
Good luck, this problem is WAY bigger than eBay problem, you have his reputation to uphold. this is his livelihood someone is screwing with.
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Getting set up with VeRO is a good idea now.
But don't miss the obvious first step. Make an appointment with a copyright specializing Intellectual Property rights attorney. You need to know your rights and what steps you need to take to protect your works. The Laws have changed with treaties being approved. The attorney can then explain your rights on paintings etc.
The gotcha on this might be something like a signature "Tom Smith", with me deliberately making a worst case scenario. There are lots of Smiths in the world. Simply putting the name there isn't necessarily enough. That is up to the attorney to point out.
There are criminal and civil actions that can be taken. Criminal in that someone might have violated a copyright, however, it is possible they did not. They may have defrauded buyer(s) by claiming in text that this work is by your husband as long as it isn't just any "Tom Smith". If they copied your husband's signature explicitly that might be a copyright issue, however, putting any Tom Smith on a painting and saying it is a Tom Smith painting might not infringe on your husband's copyrights to his paintings. It is different when they photocopy your husband's actual painting and then try to sell the copy of the painting. Criminal cases are prosecuted by the States and Federal governments law enforcement and result in fines and jail time and possibly partial compensation to the victim. Civil cases are between the two litigants and result in monetary compensation. These are separate issues entirely and are two separate trials.
You need to have the attorney explain about trademarks probably and how they might be applied. And how to mark the paintings with a copyright notice.
VeRO is a way for an owner of a patent, copyright, or trademark to enforce their right initially on an auction or sale on eBay by cancelling a seller's auction or offer. The problem with this is that if you take this action and don't have proof of ownership, then you might find yourself sued by the seller for interfering in their commerce and making a fraudulent claim.
Most folks don't realize the time they need an attorney is before they get into trouble. It is much less costly keeping out of trouble than to try to dig out from under the pile of trouble we can cause before we realize we need them. Still, good judgement says be very clear what you want to know, and what you are willing to pay, and be explicit in your questions and expectations with the attorney and don't leave them with openings to go read up on the Law at your expense. Remember, I said one specializing in copyrights, or more specifically "Intellectual Property rights issues". You do not want to go to the family attorney who dabbles in this.
I'd expect the IP attorney to be more expensive per hour than a normal attorney so use their time wisely and don't leave open ended any expense issues like research or writing letters, etc.
I'd suggest not threatening the seller or issuing a VeRO cancellation of their sale without having first talked to the attorney.
Answer
Hello carber. Here are a few things you can do. Definitely fill out the NOCI form right away:
Download and fill out eBay's Notice of Claimed Infringement form (NOCI form) This form is specifically for people who have had their copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights infringed on eBay: http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidenc...hts-owner.html
EBay's DMCA Registered Agent info: (address, phone, email & fax) http://pages.ebay.com/help/community...red-agent.html
Copyright Basics: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/copyrights.html
This help page is for sellers who have had their auctions shut down due to copyright or trademark infringements through eBay's VeRO program. Even though you're on the opposite end of the problem, the page contains some useful links related to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act(DMCA) http://www.mindspring.com/~bookdealers/issues.html
File a complaint with eBay here - Click on the Community Watch link under "Inappropriate items: If you find a potentially illegal, infringing or inappropriate item on eBay, you can report these items to Community Watch at eBay". http://pages.ebay.com/help/myinfo/complaints.html
A good eBay help page with links to just about everything: http://ebayhelppage.com/
Internet National Fraud Information Center: http://www.fraud.org/
Edited to add: I agree with dstuber about hiring an attorney who specializes in Copyright Law if you don't already have one. Not only to help facilitate and speed up the DMCA procedure in this current eBay situation but to give you advice on how best to protect yourself against future infringements.
Blanche
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I would like to thank everyone who has replied to my message. I do have a few questions, because I am so inexperienced with these matters. First, I am a registered ebay user. In order to participate in the VERO program, would I have to register my husband, since he is the person who is directly affected? I read the information about VERO on ebay, but it's taking a while to "sink in," I think. Second, just a little clarification: the person who is posting these auctions has gone to an Internet index of artists and copied my husband's biographical information, regarding his birthdate, subject matter, galleries, etc. Then there is a painting which he did not paint, with his signature on it. My husband has an unusual name. I do not know what the Internet rules are, but I could post a link to one of my husband's real paintings and then another link to the current ebay auction. I don't know whether such things are permitted. Again, thank you.
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I can answer the first question.
Yes, your husband should register with eBay and then download, fill out and fax to eBay the NOCI form. His registration may not be required for the form but I think it would be helpful.
You can also report the auctions by using the following link but your husband needs to fill out the NOCI form in order to guarantee any results from eBay: http://pages.ebay.com/help/contact_i...ng_static.html click on Potentially infringing or counterfeit items
Blanche
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Thank you again. Blanche, I have printed the NOCI form and appreciate those links.
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Second, just a little clarification: the person who is posting these auctions has gone to an Internet index of artists and copied my husband's biographical information, regarding his birthdate, subject matter, galleries, etc.
carber, one more suggestion. Go to the website where your husband's biographical info is posted and look for any statements regarding copyright. Is there a statement saying one cannot copy the info printed on their website without permission? If there is such a statement, send an email to their webmaster with the links to the auctions that are infringing on their copyright.
Please keep us informed of your progress.
Blanche
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Also, there is nothing worng with contacting previous buyers, if you have reason they may be able to assist you
It is not interference after the fact