Listings deactivated due to handmade policy my images stollen and used on other websites

[VivienFrankDesigns]

I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this or has any advice for me.

I have been a seller on Etsy since 2010, I make handmade jewelry in a small studio which I was able to open because of my etsy sales. The jewelry is handmade by me, which can easily be seen on my website. I have a jewelers stamp and am registered in Switzerland with metal control.

I have built up my etsy shop for 14 years, taking care to make the best possible items and customer service. I have been a star seller from the beginning and have taken great pride in it.

Recently listings of mine have been deactivated due to handmade policy. These items are made by me, so I could not understand why they would choose these items to deactivate.  Then the next day more were deactivated and two days ago I received my last warning and my star seller badge was removed.  Now I wake up in the morning worrying that my shop will be shut down.  A shop that I have been building the last 14 years and have taken so much care with.

I did a bit of research and I think what may have happened ( it is the only thing that makes sense) is that with reverse photo search, I have seen that discount websites have stollen my images and used them on their site such as Temu, Alibaba and Co. So I am thinking that the Etsy bot found these images on othere sites and assumed I am re-selling these items on my etsy shop.

I have written etsy support twice but have not received a reply and now I am just so worried that my shop will be shut down, it is really a stressful situation because this shop is my lively hood and all the items deactivated are made by me.

I wish I could speak to someone from Etsy but all I seem to be able to do is contact support and hope they react before another image is found that someone has stollen from my website. I strive to take the best possible images for my shop as Etsy wishes us to do .... and they are being stollen.

In the meantime, I have deactivated a number of my items which I found images used on reverse image search.  This must all just be a Technical issue - no?

Does anyone have any advise for me or has gone throught the same thing? Can anyone help?

[CryzalisDesigns]

You will have to issue takedown notices with these sites, but it may be quicker to report them to google direct to have them taken down.

https://support.google.com/legal/answer/3110420?hl=en

I would contact Etsy with all you paperwork and maybe add a link for a video upload showing you creating these items, it may get your listings back sooner.

[VivienFrankDesigns]

Hi Cryzalis

Thank you. I will try. I looked up some of the sites and there is no contact possibilites or you need to be a member to get into the website. Very shifty. Thank you for the link.

[VivienFrankDesigns]

The problem also is that these images are being used on multiple websites mostly in China and I don't know all the images which are being used. I am just figuring taking new images for the items and maybe water marking them. But I feel like I am hanging on a thread right now. I am sure another image will be found and I am at my last warning... I feel a bit helpless.

[CryzalisDesigns]

That is why you need to get ahead of this.

Make a quick video of you creating or designing your items.

Upload the video to Google drive or Dropbox and send Etsy an email with all the information including Images and the video link.

Trying to stop others stealing your images online is a losing game, the minute you successfully remove one, 10 more pop up by the same sellers. They have cloned listings and websites ready to go once one gets deactivated.

It is frustrating, infuriating & unfair so you need to put that aside or it will affect your work and pro actively prevent Etsy from removing your listings by providing them your process. 

[CryzalisDesigns]

You are very welcome, it is very difficult with some of the large sites based in China or the scam sites which also steal images and use your name and text.

I found going via Google is at times quicker regarding results.

[CraftyCornishMaids]

you need to issue takedown notices, 

you can issue them to the website holders, and to google

then give copies of those to etsy and appeal - even if the sites don't take them down, the issue notices should help.

do NOT relist the ltems - etsy has said not to, if you relist, they can shut your shop for good, it doesn't matter if the pictures are different, they have said you can't sell that item here.

Etsy will relist them, if they think they can be relisted

[VivienFrankDesigns]

Hi Crafty

The images are on websites in china and websites with no contact info. I will try it with google but the thing is I do not know exactly how many of my images have been taken. It is very time consuming where as I haven't done anthing wrong. I would much rather prove to Etsy that these images are mine.  In anycase, this is what I think is the issue but I have not heard back from Etsy yet.

[AcmeRainbows]

Sellers Whose Original Photos Were Stolen by Aliba... - Welcome to the Etsy Community

[Naturespaintbrush]

I just read the post of "Sellers whose original photos were stolen by Alibaba". This is terrifying .  Etsy is destroying themselves by deactivating all their best seller listings because of stolen photos on scam sites.  There has to be a way for them to realize this - star seller shops with star seller badges are being decimated because their photos were stolen and put on Temu???  It must be obvious when looking at reviews that are all 5 stars vs the scam shops where customers never even received an item.   I have a pic from someone who ordered a glass of one of these shops where their chicken didn't even have eyes!  They didn't order it from me so I couldn't help them, they just googled and found my pics on Etsy and contacted me

[Chrysalism]

I'm in the exact same boat. 12 years on Etsy selling my handmade jewelry- all my own designs, every one of my 40k+ sales made by my own hands or my partner's. We have a studio in our city's art district and our shop is our sole source of income so we are very careful to abide by all Etsy policies. As of today it has been 30 days since my listing was removed for "handmade policy violation", and 21 days since my hard-earned Star Seller badge was removed for "final policy violation warning" (even though I have never had any previous violations). I have been terrified this whole time that my shop will be suspended for subsequent violations. My photos are stolen frequently and are all over Ali/Temu/DHGate. I've been manually searching and filing takedowns but it's incredibly time consuming and my shop keeps me quite busy so it is slow going, and new thefts happen constantly so I've barely taken a bite out of it. 

I opened a help ticket with support on the first day and sent them detailed photo proof of my handmade process, my studio, and my photography area (including distinctive props that are in the stolen photos). In each photo I included a handwritten note with my shop name, help ticket number, and the date. I spent much of the first two weeks contacting Etsy's call center dozens of times to attempt to have my ticket escalated/marked urgent. I wasted a lot of time on this and it was extremely unproductive- I don't recommend it. I was told lots of different, contradicting info (much of it false) by call center employees who just wanted to get me off the phone. I posted all over Etsy's social media as well but never got any replies. I have yet to receive a reply on my help ticket and have heard from other sellers that it can take 2-3 months for the team responsible to actually reply. There does not appear to be any way to expedite this process.

I'm furious that Etsy does not have a better system in place for this. Any successful seller over a certain size is inevitably going to have their photos stolen by these sites, often and repeatedly. Keeping up with the neverending whack-a-mole of DMCA takedowns and rephotographing only to have the photos stolen again is unacceptably time consuming and takes focus away from running our shops. Etsy needs an effective appeal system or a "Verified Handmade" badge for verified shops to protect our listings from erroneous handmade violation bot removal. They could even charge for this- at this point I would gladly pay $100 or more to get eyes on my help ticket, get my StarSeller back, and have a verification badge/assurance this won't happen again.

I'm really sorry this is happening to you. The best advice I can give is not to put too much energy into contacting Etsy. I wasted 20+ hours researching this issue and trying to get my ticket escalated. Now I reply to my open ticket every couple days with "I still need help", but other than that I'm just trying to stay calm until I hear back. Good luck!

[AcmeRainbows]

I hope you are diversifying...i.e., Amazon handmade.  Both you and the OP have great photos that would work well over there.

I have had Amazon sellers steal my photos as well, but they don't suspend ME for that.

[Chrysalism]

Update- I just finally heard back and my listing was reinstated today. My Star Seller was not restored, so I replied again to the help ticket but am not hopeful for a quick resolution. 

[VivienFrankDesigns]

Thank you so much for your reply. It really helps to know that I am not alone in this. I have worked so hard for 14 years, this is just increadable. Every day now, I wake up checking if my etsy shop is still up and running. I have also put in so much care with my shop and feel so left alone from etsy. I also make a living from my shop so I really am on pins and needles and the worst thing is that I have done nothing wrong except taken the best possible images that are being stollen. I am wondering if anyone has seen my support tickets and why it is taking so long to rectify when it is quite apparent that images have been stollen. I am a disapointed that I am not receiving any support from Etsy.

14 years with no problems at all and now within 2 weeks on my final notice!

[VivienFrankDesigns]

So happy to hear that your listing was reinstated!!

[irmaKdesigns]

@VivienFrankDesigns @Chrysalism your photos are beautiful and professional, and you both have a lot of sales, that means you'll be copied.

Watermark every photo that you publish online (not just Etsy). It won't stop the thieves, but they're lazy and it's one additional (easy) step for them to remove the watermark, they might move on to an easier target.

Watermark the area that is not a solid background and it's not too far from the  object so it can't be cropped out. I can show you one example with your image if you want to DM me (I'm graphic designer). It's devastating to see talented artists being destroyed by some lazy a$$•s.

And keep rotating first photo on Etsy, before Etsy bots find in on other sites. Best of luck.

[Chrysalism]

Watermarks are not favored by google, and sadly they do no good at all if Etsy won't review our presented evidence/appeal in a timely matter.

It's hard work to find a thumbnail that generates traffic- sometimes even slight differences will completely change the way customers respond to an image. Because of this, I'm not a fan of switching out my photos or rephotographing (which is also quite time consuming). I realize this increases the likelihood my listings will be targeted by IP thieves but for now I need to focus on other parts of my business and just hope that Etsy restructures their bot removal process before too long. 

[irmaKdesigns]

@Chrysalism you know best what works for you. If most of your traffic comes from google, then it's Google's SEO works for you. But, it's not that watermarks are not favored by G, it's the clutter created by it that G doesn't like.

Google likes high-quality images (high-res, not blurry, not cluttered), because users prefer clean thumbnails, so G will favor clean thumbnails. A watermark doesn't have to be obtrusive.

If Etsy was my main selling site, then I'd cater to Etsy, not Google, because if Etsy shuts down my shop, then Google won't find me anyway.

Like @AcmeRainbows mentioned, it's a good idea to diversify. Etsy is in no rush to improve their removal process. I'm just a number here.

[AutumnWeddings]

I had this same issue so used to watermark. They then started editing out my watermarks (I could tell as I could see evidence left behind). It doesn't stop them so not worth downgrading your conversion etc

[BriarMoonBeads]

I'm so sorry this is happening to you, I can't imagine how sickening it must be. Sadly Etsy do not care about us as people, they operate under the mantra 'forgiveness is easier than permission'. They train their bots, the bots mess up, we suffer.....and Etsy carries on. They expect the seller to make the huge effort to fix things, because at the end of the day we are the ones it matters to. I expect they bet on us being too invested to leave... 

Personally I'd start focusing on social media and your own website. I think every business should see etsy as an outlet or just a springboard to their own website; this is not a safe place any more.

[VivienFrankDesigns]

I have invested so much time and effort, I really would like someone from etsy to just have a look at me emails and shop. It is quite clear what has happened and also quite clear than my items are 100% my own. It seems like such a simple fix.

[Naturespaintbrush]

I have been on Etsy since 2015 and the exact same thing just happened to me.  One of my best selling listings was deactivated for violating Etsy's hand made policy. Interesting since I have been selling this item for years and it was designed by me from my own chickens and I paint all my own designs.  At first I was shocked and didn't understand until it occurred that I have been battling other platforms that show MY photos of MY products from my Etsy shop.  These stolen photo's have appeared on Facebook marketplace, Instagram, amazon, Aliexpress, Temu, and Light in the Box.  Ironically, they even show my initials on the glass.  I did chase these scammers around cyberspace for awhile to have them remove my photos but then it just became impossible to keep up.  Apparently Etsys's Bots have gone crazy because I have seen a lot of these posts lately.  Pretty funny I get punished by Etsy for being creative and having MY unique design stolen, while the scammers still have their pages up and running.  I did reach someone at Etsy and they requested I send them screen shots of the offending sites.  With the frequency of these online thieves, Etsy is going to need to reprogram the bots or there won't be anything left on the platform. I am still waiting for resolution

[VivienFrankDesigns]

Hi Naturespaintbrush

Thank you for your post. How long did it take for you to receive a reply from etsy? Which route did you go via etsy support or is there another way as well. I have not recieve a reply from them yet and it has been over two weeks.

Thanks so much!

[Naturespaintbrush]

I like you posted in the forums and someone sent me a link to enter your phone number for a call back- to my surprise a rep from Etsy called me within minutes - I'll go copy and paste the link here for you

[Naturespaintbrush]

https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?segment=selling#issue_sell_manage_listings-callback