Home » LAW »» Intellectual Property

website copying (Intellectual Property)

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 01:41:00 GMT
Tags: apparently, bri, copying, intellectual, jot, law, michiganbrhello, property, state, time, webmaster, website

What is the name of your state? Michigan
Hello,
I have a problem with a webmaster. He signed up on my website some time ago, apparently to jot down ideas and copy text from It. I recently was alerted about his forum a few days ago, and to my shock, his forum is exactly like mine.
You see, I have a site in which i developed a php script, with a unique idea, for my site only, it runs the site and makes the site what it is, and he's recreated it. This is morally incorrect.
That's not all, my site had unique crews, staff crews if you will, he has them on his site as well. He has some of the same forums, he's copied the text from my "rules" post / threads and put them on his site, he's even copied my forum descriptions.
He's also copied another script I have for my site. He also has all of the same hacks / mods that I have from vbulletin.org, and while I understand completely those are free to anyone, I'm quite sure he knew where to find them from my site.
He's bascially ripped me off from everything I've worked for 2 years to create, and I'm wondering what i can do about it. He's snarky and immature and claims i am nuts.
Right now the only thing seperating the 2 sites are some forums that he has that I don't, the design, and a member difference of 10,300. (I have 10,600, he has 300). He's disrupted my community and upset my staff and members. I need some help.
Thank you.What is the name of your state?

Comments (14) | Promote | Bookmark |

  • Leave a Comment Now.
  • Comments
  • Mon, 24 Jul 2006 21:35:00 GMT(1)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by divgradcurl

    Webhost, actually, is the right people to contact -- but you have to contact them exactly the right way, or they won't respond.
    See 17 USC 512(c)(3), http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap5.html#512
    (3) Elements of notification. -
    (A) To be effective under this subsection, a notification of claimed infringement must be a written communication provided to the designated agent of a service provider that includes substantially the following:
    (i) A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
    (ii) Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site.
    (iii) Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material.
    (iv) Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted.
    (v) A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
    (vi) A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
    So, you need to send a letter to his webhost (assuming said webhost is in the U.S.) with the stuff listed above, and the webhost will remove the offending material. The webhost will then notify the other guy, and he has so many days to respond. If he doesn't respond, you win, the stuff stays down. If he does, well, then you have to decide whether or not it is worthwhile to sue him or not, or give it up. So this isn't a foolproof method of getting results, but maybe it will work, or maybe scare him into thinking you are serious about this.
    If he is not in the U.S., give it up, it's not worth the effort.
    Also, copyright infringement covers more than just bit-by-bit copying, so if he copied design elements of your site, that's good enough. Putting together bits of over people's code, even if you figured out how to do it first, is probably not something you can sue over.


    Okay, His webhost is the owner of the website in question. The webhost has this guy that copied me running the site and coding things for it. I previously contacted the webhost and told him he would be sued if he did not take action, and of course he got defensive and told me nothing was copied and i was insane and to just go ahead and sue him. So filing anything with him is a lost cause.
    If I could get anything removed, It would be the text he copied from my site, and thats not important to me. It's the methods / ideas he copied from my site that matter, and I suppose there's nothing I can do about that, so I should probably ignore him.
    Can you patent script methods, or are patents for physcial objects only?
  • Mon, 24 Jul 2006 20:32:00 GMT(2)
  • Webhost, actually, is the right people to contact -- but you have to contact them exactly the right way, or they won't respond.
    See 17 USC 512(c)(3), http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap5.html#512
    (3) Elements of notification. -
    (A) To be effective under this subsection, a notification of claimed infringement must be a written communication provided to the designated agent of a service provider that includes substantially the following:
    (i) A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
    (ii) Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site.
    (iii) Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material.
    (iv) Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted.
    (v) A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
    (vi) A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
    So, you need to send a letter to his webhost (assuming said webhost is in the U.S.) with the stuff listed above, and the webhost will remove the offending material. The webhost will then notify the other guy, and he has so many days to respond. If he doesn't respond, you win, the stuff stays down. If he does, well, then you have to decide whether or not it is worthwhile to sue him or not, or give it up. So this isn't a foolproof method of getting results, but maybe it will work, or maybe scare him into thinking you are serious about this.
    If he is not in the U.S., give it up, it's not worth the effort.
    Also, copyright infringement covers more than just bit-by-bit copying, so if he copied design elements of your site, that's good enough. Putting together bits of over people's code, even if you figured out how to do it first, is probably not something you can sue over.
  • Tue, 08 Aug 2006 19:43:00 GMT(3)
  • ? I'm confused by your statement BB.
    I'm not the one complaining that someone stole my code.....I was just curious, because I've "stolen" code myself, if it is illegal to do such. I'm unaware of any copyrights, except where specifically shown on images and such. I simply don't understand, finding the code is basically a click away on any site......I mean doesn't it have to be posted somewhere that the code, images, design, etc. are entirely protected by copyright, and no portions within can be copied. Anyhow, if that were the case, shouldn't the designer have protected his/her site so that nothing can be copied? Please advise....Thanks
  • Wed, 09 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT(4)
  • No, it is NOT up to the designer to make special arrangements to make sure nobody steals their work. It is up to YOU to insure that you do not infringe. So if you are, stop it.
  • Wed, 09 Aug 2006 19:00:00 GMT(5)
  • OKay, that makes it more clear. Thanks!
  • Mon, 24 Jul 2006 23:37:00 GMT(6)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by flutterby

    Okay, His webhost is the owner of the website in question. The webhost has this guy that copied me running the site and coding things for it. I previously contacted the webhost and told him he would be sued if he did not take action, and of course he got defensive and told me nothing was copied and i was insane and to just go ahead and sue him. So filing anything with him is a lost cause.
    If I could get anything removed, It would be the text he copied from my site, and thats not important to me. It's the methods / ideas he copied from my site that matter, and I suppose there's nothing I can do about that, so I should probably ignore him.
    Can you patent script methods, or are patents for physcial objects only?

    Software methods can be patentable, but not all computer methods are patentable. If you want to look into a patent, go to www.uspto.gov, go to "patents," then go to "find a patent attorney or agent," look for one in your area, they can discuss with you your options.
  • Mon, 07 Aug 2006 20:01:00 GMT(7)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by Job_Hunting

    Maybe I'm misunderstanding the original post.
    There are many sites created by "stealing" scripts, and code, etc. Iv'e done it myself. If there's no copyright, trademark or patent, I don't understand how this is illegal. Someone please explain.....

    And how do you KNOW that there is no patent, trademark or copyright that covers the stuff you are stealing?
    Just because you've gotten away with it doesn't mean it's legal. Now, if you are downloading from places that have open-source scripts, or otherwise provide scripts and the like for free, then you are in the clear. But if you just take a random script from someplace, it may very well be covered by copyright, or, in certain instances, one or more U.S. patents.
    Actually, even the free and open-source stuff is still covered by copyright be default, but the owner may allow free use and distribution -- but the work is still probably covered by copyright, unless the copyright is specifically disclaimed.
  • Mon, 24 Jul 2006 19:41:00 GMT(8)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by divgradcurl

    Well, if he won'y voluntarily remove his site, you have a couple of options. You could contact his ISP and file a "DMCA" complaint -- see 17 U.S.C. 512(c) -- that might make him sit up and take notice, but on the other hand, if he fights back, then you are right back where you started. Otherwise, if he did steal your stuff, then you could sue him for copyright infringement. Unfortunately, this will involve hiring a lawyer, and could be expensive, so you'll want to exhaust other options first.
    If his site is so small compared to yours, maybe you best course of action is to ignore the other guy.

    His ISP? I contacted his webhost and he told me to go ahead and sue him, then I contacted his server company and they told me there wasn't much they could do since he recreated the script and did not copy it. The problem here for me is the principal of it all, I worked for months creating that script and going through builds and getting everything just right and he came along and copied my methods and now he's being smart about it. Should I go to his ISP next?
    I think my problem here is he didn't "steal" anything, he bascially idea ripped me in every way possible. I mean everything my site has, he has. He did copy some of my text, however.
    I thought about ignoring him but this is the 5th time this has happen (just not as deep as this) and I figure if i continue to hang my head, it will keep occuring.
  • Sun, 06 Aug 2006 22:13:00 GMT(9)
  • Maybe I'm misunderstanding the original post.
    There are many sites created by "stealing" scripts, and code, etc. Iv'e done it myself. If there's no copyright, trademark or patent, I don't understand how this is illegal. Someone please explain.....
  • Mon, 07 Aug 2006 20:30:00 GMT(10)
  • I don't know, which is why I'm asking someone to explain.....
    I'd like to hear from a webdesigner who has NEVER borrowed snippets of code, etc. for his own site. If he/she hasn't, then they know everything there is to know about web design, or not much at all.
  • Wed, 09 Aug 2006 16:38:00 GMT(11)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by Job_Hunting

    ? I'm confused by your statement BB.
    I'm not the one complaining that someone stole my code.....I was just curious, because I've "stolen" code myself, if it is illegal to do such. I'm unaware of any copyrights, except where specifically shown on images and such. I simply don't understand, finding the code is basically a click away on any site......I mean doesn't it have to be posted somewhere that the code, images, design, etc. are entirely protected by copyright, and no portions within can be copied. Anyhow, if that were the case, shouldn't the designer have protected his/her site so that nothing can be copied? Please advise....Thanks

    No. Copyright attaches automatically, and there is NO requirement that there be any logo, copyright notice, protections, anything. The only safe way to go about things is to just assume that whatever you are looking at is copyrighted.
    Of course, in the majority of cases nobody bothers to enforce their copyrights on the internet -- but they could, if they wanted to.
  • Tue, 01 Aug 2006 16:09:00 GMT(12)
  • See Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1125(a). Examine whether the actions of this person and the website may have caused other damages in which they are deemed to have violated, among other federal laws, including among others, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Economic Espionage Act, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the Wiretap Act, the Consumer Fraud and Abuse Act, the AntiSpam Act, as well as Floridas Computer Systems Protection Act and numerous federal and state civil and criminal statutes. You are also deemed to be in violation of Intellectual Property laws, and the Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, the Federal Trademark Dilution Act, the AntiCybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, 15 USC 1125, U.S. Copyright and Trademark Violations, along with other prominent Federal and State Trademark and Copyright law violations.
  • Mon, 24 Jul 2006 15:24:00 GMT(13)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by flutterby

    What is the name of your state? Michigan
    Hello,
    I have a problem with a webmaster. He signed up on my website some time ago, apparently to jot down ideas and copy text from It. I recently was alerted about his forum a few days ago, and to my shock, his forum is exactly like mine.
    You see, I have a site in which i developed a php script, with a unique idea, for my site only, it runs the site and makes the site what it is, and he's recreated it. This is morally incorrect.
    That's not all, my site had unique crews, staff crews if you will, he has them on his site as well. He has some of the same forums, he's copied the text from my "rules" post / threads and put them on his site, he's even copied my forum descriptions.
    He's also copied another script I have for my site. He also has all of the same hacks / mods that I have from vbulletin.org, and while I understand completely those are free to anyone, I'm quite sure he knew where to find them from my site.
    He's bascially ripped me off from everything I've worked for 2 years to create, and I'm wondering what i can do about it. He's snarky and immature and claims i am nuts.
    Right now the only thing seperating the 2 sites are some forums that he has that I don't, the design, and a member difference of 10,300. (I have 10,600, he has 300). He's disrupted my community and upset my staff and members. I need some help.
    Thank you.What is the name of your state?

    Well, if he won'y voluntarily remove his site, you have a couple of options. You could contact his ISP and file a "DMCA" complaint -- see 17 U.S.C. 512(c) -- that might make him sit up and take notice, but on the other hand, if he fights back, then you are right back where you started. Otherwise, if he did steal your stuff, then you could sue him for copyright infringement. Unfortunately, this will involve hiring a lawyer, and could be expensive, so you'll want to exhaust other options first.
    If his site is so small compared to yours, maybe you best course of action is to ignore the other guy.
  • Tue, 08 Aug 2006 08:36:00 GMT(14)

  • Quote:

    Originally Posted by Job_Hunting

    I don't know, which is why I'm asking someone to explain.....
    I'd like to hear from a webdesigner who has NEVER borrowed snippets of code, etc. for his own site. If he/she hasn't, then they know everything there is to know about web design, or not much at all.

    And what would that accomplish?
    This is a legal forum. You have yet to provide proof that you hold a copyright on any code or that this person has purloined such.
  • Leave a Comment Now.

Intellectual Property Open Questions

website contract question

What is the name of your state? MI I have just started a website development business with a friend and we are currently discussing a contract with our first client. One of the concerns we have is that our client wants us to sign the contract in our own names. He wants this because we are a new......

website content dispute

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA My friend runs a website where he advertises services and is targeting different communities. He has landing pages with keywords that attract results in Google. Recently he got a complaint from a school asking who gave the website authorization......

Website Content

Iam planning to build a website.It involves copying some info from another websites and i want to mention their website names from where i have collected data in my website.I saw some websites who are doing this kind of stuff. Shall i get any copyright problems if i do this? If so,how can i......

Website as infringement of a trademark

I recently purchased a new website www.royalmails.co.uk This website was bought totally legitimately and I have spent around three weeks setting it up as my email hub - 'royal' is my nickname and 'mails' is the purpose of the website. I recently had reason to complain to the chief executive of......

Website & Music Titles

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? New York I am in the process of creating a website for my husband who is a singer/keyboard player that plays oldies from the 50's, mostly 60's, and 70's era. I want to put a list of some of the songs,......

website & forum posts

What is the name of your state? Maine I recently purchased a website that posts news stories and has a forum. A former frequent poster is demanding everything he contributed to the page prior to my acquisition be removed. Am I correct in thinking that since he posted these things on another......

website & domain name similar to print magazine name

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? west virginia I have recently launched a web forum geared towards nursery growers and those in th growing trades. I own the domain My Community - Index, and have built the site, and The site has been up about 2 weeks. I have not registered for......

Website 4 opinions of local biz ?

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? ND I'm starting a website that allows people to state their opinions of local businesses. Since some of the opinions might not be good I'm worried of an unhappy biz sueing me to remove the posting. Am I in the clear or would they......

Website - Securing Name & Concept

What is the name of your state? Georgia, USA Hello all... I am creating a website that is actually using vBulletin for its functions... I am putting together several ways to keep the Community as a portal, to an industry that doesn't have a site like it. I have the site secured, what should......

Website

California If a person contributes text and pictures to a website that has a nonregistered copyright, am I oblgated to remove the text and pictures if the contributor requests it? Thanks....

Some questions maybe you're interest in...

Compensation for daughter in accident

[Accidents & Personal Injury Law] What is the name of your state? Washington State On 4/16/2005 My daughter was a passenger in my automobile. She is was 8 years old. 99.99% of the time she sits in the middle section behind the passenger side seat. On this date I allowed her to sit it the front seat of our two month old 2005.........

CM Conviction With Bcd; Can It Be Expunged?

[Government & Administrative Law] 29 JANUARY 2006 Respectfully, can a special court martial conviction with a bcd for purely military offenses be expunged; especially after having it 35 years with an exemplary civilian record? If so, how does one pursue this avenue? Thank you in advance.......

sale of past rental as primary residence

[Tax Law] What is the name of your state? Ca. We had a home that we used as a rental for about 14 years,showing income as rental and expenses(depreciation). 3 years ago we moved into it as our primary residence. If we ever sell it,will there be a recapture for past expenses while a rental?......

What is the process for filing damages?

[COURTS, LAWYERS & LITIGATION] What is the name of your state? California I live in an apt. above a garage. The person who owns the garage below has repeatedly caused nuisances with the car he parks under my bedroom. He lets the car idle for at least 5 to 10 minutes, which causes the fumes to go up to my bedroom. This.........

House burned down. Can we get our deposit/rent back?

[Real Estate & Property Law] What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? :California My mom and stepdad were on a month-to-month lease with our landlords. There was no adequate heat source provided. A wood stove was in the house, but the front door would not lock shut and the vent leaked back into the house when it was.........

Does An LLC Need A Lawyer In Court?

[BUSINESS & FINANCIAL & Corporate LAW] I am in Michigan and work for an LLC that owns property. When we go to tenant-landlord court, we always have a lawyer represent us, even though I have to go and commonly know more about the situation than the lawyer. My sister and I would like to start a business, we were considering an LLC.........

Desperate Situation

[Family Law] What is the name of your state?Pennsylvania. I've been out of my house since June. I moved out because I and the wife wasn't getting along well. One night I came in late and she bit me on the chest, being upset. We got into it and the police was called. They showed up and she told them I pushed.........

injuries-at work

[Accidents & Personal Injury Law] I live in Texas. I have never filed for workmen's comp or anything. But now I feel I should. I have had torn ligiments at work about 5 years ago. I cut my elbow deeply and went to the hospital about 3 years ago. I have a hernia and I pulled something in my back. All these things are now giving me.........

861 Loser - The Cochrans

[Tax Law] And now ANOTHER dose of REALITY: T.C. Memo. 2002-18 UNITED STATES TAX COURT MARK CHRISTOPHER AND NANCY LOUISE CORCORAN, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent Docket No. 2947-01. Filed January 18, 2002. Mark Christopher Corcoran, pro se. Timothy F. Salel, for respondent..........

Students false accusations lead to punishment

[Government & Administrative Law] What is the name of your state? CA My son did not do the action he is accussed of and was cut from the school program. During several chemistry lessons the teacher left the class unattended for almost entire class periods. The roll book was left opened on teacher's table with all other papers..........