Request for Help – Deactivated Product, No Response from Etsy

[MARIAELA]

Hello,
One of my key products was deactivated by Etsy without a clear explanation. This is an item I have successfully sold for years. It was entirely designed and created by me in my workshop, and the photos and descriptions are 100% my original work.

I submitted an appeal over a week ago, providing detailed evidence of the product's originality, including photos of the creation process and the original image files. Unfortunately, I have not received any response from Etsy yet. This lack of communication is causing significant disruptions, as this listing is an essential part of my shop.

Has anyone else experienced a similar issue? Are there effective ways to escalate the matter with Etsy or get a quicker response? I would greatly appreciate any advice or shared experiences.

Thank you in advance for your help and support!

Best regards,Ela

[MARIAELA]

Today, I followed up with another message to Etsy Support, hoping for clarification and a resolution. This listing is an essential part of my shop and business, and the lack of response is causing significant challenges.

Has anyone else experienced a similar issue? How long did it take to get a response, and are there any additional steps I can take to expedite the process? I would appreciate any advice or insights from the community.

Thank you in advance for your help and support!

[PrairiePrimitives]

@MARIAELA Many other sellers have had the same experience in recent months. There are hundreds of posts about this here in these forums.

Have you used Google Lens to see if your photos are being used on other websites? Many sellers have discovered that their images have been stolen by AliExpress and Temu sellers, among others.

If you do find your images on other sites, you need to work on getting them removed. From what I've read here in the forums, as long as you can prove to Etsy that you have tried to get them removed, that may be good enough because you obviously have no control over whether or not they actually do get removed.

[ANAMARKO]

Oh no! Fingers crossed for good resolve this problem, Mariaela!

[MARIAELA]

Thank you for pointing this out. I didn’t realize that starting a new message could push me to the bottom of the queue. I’ll make sure to keep all future communication within the same email thread.

For now, I will follow your advice and reply to the automated messages I’ve received, emphasizing that I still need help and would like to speak to a human. Hopefully, this will help move things forward.

Thank you again for your advice and support – it’s truly appreciated!

Best regards,
MARIAELA

[NanaLetha]

Was it removed for "creativity standards"? If so, that means your photo has been stolen and put on another website.

[MARIAELA]

Thank you for your insight! Yes, my listing was removed for "creativity standards," and after checking, I found that my photos have indeed been stolen and used on other websites like Amazon and AliExpress. I believe this is why Etsy's bots flagged my listing. Unfortunately, since Etsy has already deactivated my listing, I am unable to file takedown requests on those platforms. I’m now working to get my listing reinstated, as it’s important for me to prove ownership of my work and to take further action. Thanks again for your support!

[MARIAELA]

Yes, my listing was indeed removed for "creativity standards." After checking, I discovered that my photos were stolen and used on other websites, including Amazon and AliExpress. This seems to be the reason why Etsy’s bots flagged my listing. Unfortunately, because Etsy has already deactivated my listing, I cannot submit takedown requests on these platforms yet. I am working on getting my listing reinstated so I can prove ownership and take further action.

Thank you for your insight and support!

[BagmakerSupply]

@MARIAELA: "It was entirely designed and created by me ..." Was even a general reason provided? You need to keep in mind that "violated Etsys creativity standards" can encompass much more than just if it is handmade. The violation can be anything from a 'prohibited' word in your title, description, or tags, to a non-conforming primary image, to being misclassified in core details, to intellectual property infringements, and lots in between.

"This is an item I have successfully sold for years." False positives aside, Etsy let a lot of violations slide for a very long time, and now many of the rules have changed and it is clear that Etsy has stepped up enforcement of the rules.

However, as @NanaLetha  as points out, a major reason for deactivations appears to be when a shop's images are found on wholesale sites.

[MARIAELA]

@BagmakerSupply
Thank you for your advice. I have already used Google Lens and discovered that my product's image is indeed being used on Amazon and AliExpress. The exact same decor is shown, but with a different background. Unfortunately, this seems to be the reason why Etsy's bots deactivated my listing.

The problem is that I cannot file takedown requests on these platforms because Etsy has already deactivated my listing. This puts me in a difficult position, as I need the listing reinstated, not just for my business, but also to prove ownership and to take further action.

I am fighting to get my product back on Etsy, as it’s important to defend my work and creativity. Thank you again for your input – it’s good to know I’m not alone in facing this issue.

Best regards,
MARIAELA

[MARIAELA]

Thank you for your thoughtful response. You are absolutely right, there are many potential reasons for a "creativity standards" violation, and I have carefully reviewed my listing to make sure there’s nothing like prohibited words or misclassification.

However, I believe the main issue is that my images were stolen and used on other websites like Amazon and AliExpress. This seems to be the reason why Etsy’s bots flagged my listing. I fully understand that Etsy is stepping up enforcement of its rules, but this situation leaves me in a difficult position as my listing has been deactivated.

I’m working to get the listing reinstated so I can prove my ownership and take further steps to address the image theft.

Thank you again for your insight – it’s helpful to hear your perspective!

Best regards,
MARIAELA

[MARIAELA]

Thank you for your response and for bringing up these additional points. I’ve carefully checked my title, description, tags, and classification, and everything seems to be in compliance with Etsy’s rules.

However, after further investigation, I discovered that my photos have been stolen and used on other websites like Amazon and AliExpress, which seems to be the reason why Etsy’s bots flagged my listing.

I understand that Etsy has stepped up enforcement of the rules, and I am working on filing DMCA takedown requests on these platforms to protect my intellectual property. I’m hoping that getting the listing reinstated will help me resolve this issue and prove my ownership.

Thank you again for your helpful advice and support!

Best regards,
MARIAELA

[PrairiePrimitives]

@MARIAELA Also, if the message you sent to Etsy today was a completely new message, you may have just put yourself on the bottom of the queue. It's best to keep all of your communication about a particular issue in the same email chain. If you get an automated reply to your message, reply to that simply saying that you still need help or that you need to talk to a human. You may get another automated reply, or even more than one more. Just keep replying in the same way that you still need help. Hopefully you'll eventually hear from a human, but it may take awhile.

[VintageRescueSquad]

First, you have to do the reverse-image search to see whether your photos have been stolen and appear on other large wholesale sites. That is the most common reason. If so, then file DMCA takedowns for those sites and prove to etsy that you are protecting your IP (photos).

Talking to etsy will not change anything unless you do this first. And etsy will NOT tell you the reason as that constitutes business or legal advice.

[MARIAELA]

Thank you for your advice! I’ve already used reverse-image search and found that my photos are indeed being used on other sites like Amazon and AliExpress. I will now proceed with filing DMCA takedowns on those platforms to protect my images and prove to Etsy that I’m taking action to protect my intellectual property.

I understand that talking to Etsy won’t change anything unless I take these steps first. I appreciate your guidance and will make sure to follow through with these actions.

Thank you again for your support!

Best regards,
MARIAELA

[CraftyCornishMaids]

@MARIAELA 

You can issue takedowns to the other sites, it doesn't matter if etsy has removed the listings. - you should do it anyway, as they are using your own photos, to steal your customers and revenue.

keep a record of the takedowns, then use them in your official appeal to etsy

[ForeverWindingWool]

@MARIAELA Do as @CraftyCornishMaids  suggests and get those STOLEN images removed.  Why would you want them to stay up?  Etsy will NOT reinstate your item if it is still being shown as being sold on AliExpress, Shein, and the like.

[ModAngie · Accepted solution]

Hello! We're sorry to hear you're experiencing issues with your listing. We've forwarded your concerns to a specialist team. Thank you! 

Please know we handle support inquiries privately per our Community Policy – we’re closing this thread, so you can get the support you need from us directly.