Phishing Warning: Avoid Wallpart At All Cost

For those that do not like to follow links. Here is the main thing you need to know. They are not selling your images. They are showing you what you searched for to lure you into something.
That something may be your credit card info, getting malware on your computer or just a link to a porn site. Or all and more.

"The dependence on Google Images is also why doing a search for your own name will turn up different results each time, or possibly no results at all, even though the listings still seem to exist if you have a direct URL to them. Their “search” function never actually searches their own listings; it even offers the same real-time suggestions that you’d get from a Google search bar"

These sites have been around for many years and new ones crop up all the time.
The last thing you should do is post links on a site and spread malware to others. I realize that the intentions are good but it seems like once a month someone suddenly discovers these things. If you are new to searching for your images that means you don't have much experience with images on the internet right? SO if you find something phishy just ask others about it or search the internet for more info. Don't go into the nearest forum and post a link.

The worst thing is when the more experienced and wiser ones say stay away, we are attacked as not valuing our work or allowing this stuff to exist. Quite the opposite. We just know which battles to fight and how to best fight them.

Thanks Edmund

Thank you, both.

Very well stated Bradford. These types of sites depend on people finding them, talking abut them and posting links. Without the uninformed doing those things they would not exist.




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~ Bill
~ US Pictures .com

http://fineartamerica.com/showmessages.php?messageid=2623311

bump

Thank you, Edmund!

thank you for the info., have learned my lesson the hard way with these sites. Now I listen to the 'Bradfords' who have knowledge about these sort of sites. I know that when I run an image search, my work is on countless sites just as this one. I no longer even take the time to look. All it takes is that one click and your computer is toast. Even to send a take-down notice from google you must click on the site and then your work to let google know where it is and if you do that, you are infected! So I just count on the fact that they will not be around too long which they usually are not, only a few have had more than a few months without disappearing.

So, I'm concluding from all of the above that it behooves me not to do ANY "image searches" on my artwork?

Bill Tomsa

http://billtomsa.blogspot.com/

You should be able to figure out a scam site from an infringement use. Just like you can figure out a Nigerian scam in your email. If in doubt don't click. If they are "selling" screensavers of your image definately don't click. That's just obvious to me. Its something you learn fast.

Usually an infringement is someone using your image to promote something else. They are generally not just selling your image. If they are that is a big red flag. Proceed with caution. If the link is to Amazon or a site you trust like FAA, then go there. See what it is all about. Don't go clicking from Amazon to the site and don't go to the site and start a new search. That's where they will be going to Google and feeding you back images from there. And then trying to get you to do whatever.

Hey if they can get you to input credit card info on an unsecured connection they might. Why stick around to find out? Who knows they might even give you a the screen grab from Google you just ordered up. Or they will put some malware on your computer.

Another common infringement is a "fair use" info site selling ad space. They might offer some public service info (like a recipe) and use your image. Then they sell the ad space. To keep overhead down they just grab images from a Google search. If they get caught they take it down and usually apologize. Then go grab another image. It is more common with stock type images, but it could be anything. They are usually in former Soviet countries or in Asia.
They will never pay you for the use.

Some infringements are just idiots hoping they won't get caught. Sometimes they will pay you to keep continue using the image on their blog or to keep promoting whatever it is they are promoting. Its usually something local. It could even be a school project or a local tourism site. I had a real estate company use an image to sell a million dollar property. It was old and in the past by the time I saw it. No big deal.

Bill Tomsa: if you read the provided details you will note that I have only send a warning of a specific site, based on a Russian server at present (it will move again) and my warning did not address any image search tools. Visiting the site will most certainly infect your PC with malware - if you use a Mac, you might be spared, but why take a chance at all?

Edmund Nagele F.R.P.S.

"So, I'm concluding from all of the above that it behooves me not to do ANY "image searches" on my artwork? "
Why bother? They're not selling it. They post images as if for sale so that artists will find them, click on their take down link and get hit with malware. The image links don't even work.

Abbie,
Can you please remove the link from this closed thread:
http://fineartamerica.com/showmessages.php?messageid=2569089

I think it's a bad idea to leave the live link, given the circumstances. (I posted it here and in Louise's thread just to make sure you see it.)

I am so glad the dialogue here has gone from how to best go after these guys to warnings to how to avoid getting malware to not post links to malicious sites all over the web, to lets get the old links off the site. The collective wisdom is improving. Its not something new.For sure there are many more like this.

It is still worth it to do a search for your images from time to time. Just realize that this stuff is there and expect to find it. Pretty much any Google search can lead to a malware site. That doesn't mean you should never search with Google.

i didn't check over the response, it takes about a week or so, and finding it was a pain, but i had my links removed via google. they take it right out of their search. i think if they get enough enough dmca requests to remove their things (and i don't think i had to show proof that it was my stuff, just say it was), they'll remove it. which they did today.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com