I think I always knew this was going to happen. In fact, I caught someone a few years ago that had stolen one of my iphone photos and was distributing it to people that wanted to create composites. I wasn’t too upset about that because it wasn’t a great photo, and it probably wouldn’t have been used for anything since it was heavily edited. At any rate, a simple cease and desist worked.
This recent discovery is much more upsetting. It’s a bit of a rabbit hole that myself and other artists have been delving into the last few days. At first it looked like another poster website selling photographs that didn’t belong to them. A bit of research has lead us to believe its much worse.
I actually found some of your work on their site too. I’ll mention the names in a minute, but I honestly don’t want to give out the website. The reason being that I don’t believe they’re even selling our images. Yes, they have them listed for sale, but this appears to be a phishing website that is set up to steal credit card info. There have been accounts of people trying to buy their own work, with nothing ever being shipped.
I’ve contacted a lawyer, and I’ve made attempts through the website to have my photos removed. The lawyer says there is probably nothing that can be done because the company is located in either Russia or China…its hard to tell, and they keep changing addresses. You’d think something could be done because my logo is clearly on the images being sold. Whats the point if it doesn’t offer any protection?
Honestly, I don’t care if they make a few bucks off of my work. What really bothers me is that they’re using our talent to deceive people and potentially cause major headaches. I know this has already caused me and many others a bit of stress because we don’t know what to do next. The FBI has been contacted, google has been notified of the phishing site, and notifying the department of justice may be next.
Anyways, here are some of you that I searched for and found at least one of your images for sale:
Allan Smorra, Shannon Kalahan, Leanne Cole, Edith Levy, Sally Donatello, Nicci Carrera, Mike Fiveson, Mike Moats, Laura Macky, rumpydog, Maralee Park, Brandon Kidwell, bellanoctis, Meg Greene Malvasi, Angeline Muñoz, doublewhirler, Ben Wurst, Jane Lurie.
I’m sure theres even more.
If you’re on the list and want to know the name of the site, you can contact me and I’ll tell you privately. I really don’t want to drive more traffic to their site and put more people at risk of having their information stolen.
iPhone Photographer | David Pasillas 
Wow. So there’s not really much we can do? It’s just so wrong to have someone steal someone else’s art and use it to scam others. Just so wrong!!
It is very upsetting. Lucky for us, there are a lot of angry people that want the site taken down. There is a petition on change.org with nearly 50k signatures. What will come of that, I do not know. I don’t have high hopes, but maybe it will catch the attention of someone that can do something.
https://www.change.org/p/remove-wallpart-com-stealing-people-s-work-without-persmission?recruiter=327969620&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=share_page&utm_term=mob-xs-share_petition-custom_msg
I just signed the petition. Thanks for all this information David. Let’s just hope something SOME DAY will prevent this kind of thievery.
there are more…and it’s simple if you didn’t create the image it’s not yours…yet it continues on all platforms…acknowledging the creator is not hard…thanks for sharing, albeit disappointing news.
I feel like the internet is the wild west, where anything goes. At least, if you live outside of the US/Canada/UK. I know if we get the site removed, another can easily pop up to continue doing the same thing. I feel pretty helpless at this point. All I can do is raise awareness.
yes…and there is so many photographers posting as now clicks and hits count for granting purposes and yes if not this site another will be up in minutes…i posted this on tumblr a week ago…
maybe you have already seen it…and yes as creators i was told we need to make “noise”…
Thanks, I’ll be in touch. Ω
Reblogged this on Ohm Sweet Ohm and commented:
The good news is that people like our work. The bad news is that people are appropriating it without our permission.
I am reblogging this to get the word out to anyone else who is on this list who might have missed David’s post.
The Best News: We are not alone.
OMG! I’ll contact you. Thanks for this post.
David, can you give your contact info? I can’t find it. 😦 Thanks. Or email me at info@lauramacky.com?
I’m wondering whether I should feel offended that they didn’t like my work well enough to steal it. Just kidding, of course. No way that this should go on, but the internet makes it all too easy.
janet
You should consider yourself lucky, I guess. Yes, the internet is kind of like the wild west.
David, the Internet makes it easy, but the impulse comes from the person.
I can’t believe it! I don’t know if I’m more upset or flattered. Upset really. I have worked so hard on bettering my work, but have never tried to sell anything as yet, and to have someone else do it bothers the hell out of me. I’ll be in touch, David!
Reblogged this on AngelineM's Blog and commented:
I don’t know whether to feel flattered or angry. I’m sharing this to let others know what goes on. I’ve known that this happens, but when it comes to scams, that’s another thing.
Thank you for posting! I’m glad not to be mentioned.
I just searched your name and it looks like they got yours too. You can email me at d.pasillas@yahoo.com and I’ll share the info I have so far.
WHAT. I’ll mail you.
I’ve had one of my articles (in Norwegian) stolen a few times, plus some scam site stole a full blog post with photos and text. The scam site also used Disney’s brand, so I just contacted Disney company about it since they already have lawyers to deal with such things.
Thats a good idea. I just found some disney stuff on there. I will alert them and let them handle it.
Oh that’s a great idea!
This is so frustrating. This is the second time this week I’ve found one of my images being used without my permission. I found the site through the petition link you posted up above. They’re stealing a low resolution image which is why they’re selling a poster in a 4 x 6 inch format. I can tell these folks are really bright!
…and thank you for letting us know.
Reblogged this on Laura Macky Photography and commented:
Some of us have had work stolen. 😦 Thank you to David Pasillas for bringing this to our attention!
I’m so sorry to hear about this outrageous thievery. How do you determine whether or not someone has stolen your work?
I used the search function on the Wallpart website. I searched for names of people I know or their names + photography.
I hope you are successful in stopping them.
This is very upsetting, but thanks for the alert…
Thanks for posting this. At least I am in good company, but this kind of theft just galls me. Would you contact me at m5son@comcast.net so I can see which of my photos has been stolen. Thank you
David.
You might try contacting the host. Here’s an article that explains the process –
Thanks!
This is very upsetting! Thank you for sharing this post and give all of us creative an alert.
That is terrible!!! So sorry for the frustration it is causing you!
This is so disrespectful to those who put the efforts into their work. I feel awful for you guys. I hope the site is taken down for everyones benefit. Scammers will do anything!
Thank you Tina. Too many people have been upset by this site. I hope it goes away soon.
Yes, the watermarking doesn’t work. There is a good lawyer who is a photographer who specializes in this. I’ll see if I can find his numbers…
Thank you David for taking the time not only to write this post, but to search out others about this-Artsy Shark also published a post the other day about the new copyright law and the increasing problem of artists and photographers having their work stolen. Please contact me at littledogslaughed@gmail.com when it is convenient-and thank you again David for your diligence-it is much appreciated!
Reblogged this on Move the Chair and commented:
An excellent post from David Pasillas about the ongoing problem of image theft-I remember reading a blog post many months ago from a professional photographer who basically stated that it is a losing battle to protect one’s images-one would have to monitor most everyday searching for their work online, in addition to having work copyrighted-clearly copyrights, watermarks and so forth are not the silver bullet many believe them to be-
That is terrible. Sadly this happens more than it should. How did you find out? I’ve never searched for my images but have seen my content in weird places but always with reference to my blog.
I forget where I first saw a post about this scam site, but I went and searched my name on it and found some of my stuff. You can google Wallpart if you want to look for yourself. Just be sure to delete your cookies after visiting the site. Don’t share any links to the site because they just send people to spam, instead of the actual site.
Thanks for the post, which I read when Laura Mackey reblogged it. I’ve got images on that site, too, and it is very frustrating. Now, off to sign the change.org petition.
I’m sorry that you were affected too :(. Lets hope that increasing awareness will lead to some kind of action being taken against sites like this.
Yes, let’s hope so.
On another topic – thanks for following my blog!
Reblogged this on One Day | One Image and commented:
Please read this post; it’s important that we try to keep on top of things like this and protect our work.
Reblogged this on Kintal.
Reblogged this on Yoshiko.
i’m not on the list but i share the same sentiment. it has happened before to my friends, too. this stealing has got to be stopped, am reblogging to increase awareness on this matter.
I thank you for spreading the awareness 🙂
So frustrating… I found my work on the site too and you’re right, it looks like a scam site more than anything. I signed the petition and hope something will come from our actions. Lisa
Thanks for this David. So disturbing for so many great artists.
You’re welcome, Andrew. Wow, I haven’t come across your blog before, but I really like your art!
Reblogged this on Circadianreflections Blog and commented:
I’m reblogging this to spread the word!
David, I got to your post via Laura Macky’s reblog. Thank you for sharing this information. I searched the site and found a number of my photos on there as well. I have signed the petition and will be reblogging your post to spread the word. Thank you for sharing the information and for your efforts in dealing with this situation. I’m
David, I got to your post via Laura Macky’s reblog. I searched the site and found a number of my photos on there as well. I have signed the petition and will be reblogging your post to help spread the word. Thanks so much for sharing the information and for your efforts in dealing with this situation. This is very upsetting.
Looks like they are running a search to find images when we enter a name. It popped up with an image I posted today, hardly something they would have in a catalogue somewhere. So basically, any image that will come up in an google image search will also come up on this website – in fact it is probably powered by the google search engines.
I’m a moron or a bit dull, If I see one a SF Bay pics that look like your kind of pictures and it’s doesn’t have your name on it, then it’s stolen.
Im sorry I didn’t understand what you were trying to say.
So people take photographs and claim them as their own and profit by selling these to unsuspecting buyers… What won’t people steal these days…
Yes. This happens on multiple sites online. Though, I don’t think this website is actually selling our photos. I think its a scam to steal credit card information from people that try to buy from their site.
Ahh I see..
(ง⊙﹏⊙)ง
Bummer 😦 They have stolen some of my images also. The address is clearly a fake so I expect no response from any contact emails. Petition signed.
I got a link to your post from Laura Macky. I wonder, how you were able to find those images? Did you stumbled over them while they had their watermark? How were you able to map images to those photographers?
It was simple. I just searched the names of different people.
with google or on that site?
On that site
OK, in that case, I guess, I’ve checked the wrong site. Please send it to me. On the site, I’ve checked, I didn’t found any of the photographers you’ve mentioned.
You have to google the site “Wallpart” You cant share any links to their site because the links will send people to spam.
OK, I checked that site. But I didn’t get deny results. Even with the names mentioned above.
Thats odd. I just searched again right now and I see results. The site is very bad. Sometimes you have to hit the search function a few times for results to show up.
OK, I’ll try it again! Thanks, David!
OK, now I found, I’m a victim of their theft, too. 😦
Sorry to hear it.
me, too 😦
That is a horrible thing. I am told it happens with stories and even books, as well.
Do you have to sign up in order to do a search? Nothing is coming up when I search.
No. Its a very poorly put together site. If nothing shows up, but there are page numbers, you can click on the different pages to see if theres anything.
I have no problem with anyone downloading anything I post for their personal use, but using it on a phishing site is, and always will be, criminal behavior. So where is Anonymous when you need them?
Reblogged this on MyBlog – solaner and commented:
Follow the advice given on this site. David did a great job, finding this image thief, who sells posters without permission of the photographers. Investigate as he described by using the private or incognito mode of you internet browser to find out, if you’re a victim, too. Good luck!
I assumed, I’d be save, because I’m posting only small images. But, I was wrong 😦
Unreal! There’s too many deceitful people in this world!
I am so sorry to hear this and thank you so much for the information. It looks like it is targeting wordpress photo bloggers. My blog also presented lots of images, may I know the website?
I’m sorry you’ve been affected too. If you visit my most recent post, I name the site and tell you how to remove the images.
Thank you for checking my name. I will check your new post. Somehow I am not surprised anymore – too many people have no respects toward photography that actually we put so much effort to have good quality images.. 😦
You can add me to the list as well. I Google myself weekly to check Images and see what sites they are on. I’ve caught four sites that have stolen my images, cropped out my watermark and are offering them as free downloads. However, this morning I found a person who blatantly stole not only my photos, but my text as well. He plagiarized my text, altering it here and there to describe not Death Valley, California, but some desert in Africa. I reported him to WordPress immediately. I will NOT TOLERATE THEFT OF MY IMAGES OR TEXT. EVER.
😦 Thats awful
Disturbing beyond belief. Stealing not only my images but my writing. Who does that? I have learned that it’s a really good practice to Google yourself regularly, and check your images. Don’t assume Google is picking them up just from your site. It picks them up from others as well.
How awful! It’s so frustrating!
No kidding! I’m ready to be done with the whole ordeal.
I don’t use watermarking, so I only find out an image has been used by sheer chance. It only happened to me once, and the person removed it. I fear I’m on the site, but I’d almost rather not know! Ugh!
I’d say theres a very good chance that yours are also listed for sale on their site. If you do go to the site and find your work, my most recent post is a guide for getting them to remove the images.
I’m glad you figured it out. I’m glad Wallpart took them down. I don’t know how I would even begin to find mine if they really have a billion images. I just won’t worry about it, I guess.
Reblogged this on foundinfrance and commented:
Have your images been stolen? Read here…
This is so creepy! I hope that the petition is instrumental in stopping this kind of thievery. Glad you didn’t find me there.
I guess you got lucky.
This is extremely upsetting.
Hi David, I really appreciate all the work you’ve put into this. It just disgusts me that someone is using the work of others to either profit/scam someone. I’m going over to the petition now to help do my part.
Thanks Mark. Fingers crossed that the petition leads to some action being taken. You may also want to look at my most recent post about getting your work removed from their site.
I certainly will and thank you again
Good looking out… the for sharing
Found my way here by way of Angeline M posting on her blog. This is seriously too unnerving.
How is it that people can stoop so low??!!
Please post if you find ways of stopping this thievery. Thank you …!!!
After a lot of investigation, and consulting with my brother who works for google, I believe this site is mostly harmless. It’s such a low quality site that its not likely anyone would ever try to buy anything from them anyways.
That sounds awful.
Just one more disappointment in how low human beings will stoop. This is terrible and criminal.
Thanks so much for this information. I found a few of my photos on the site. I came across this article. Maybe it would helpful not only in this case, but in similar situations in the future.
http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2009/07/06/sample-dmca-take-down-letter/id=4501/
That’s so upsetting, and I have seen these things before 😦