Intellectual Property, Copyright & Theft
May 22, 2010 by Duncan
Well I was going through my Google Analytics early this morning as I do weekly and I noticed I was getting a bit of traffic from a certain address. Now it wasn’t really the amount of traffic more like how many different pages (this very website) Digital Deceptions was getting from a particular domain name which does happen from time to time but this was different.
I clicked on the link suspecting some spam site has picked up my RSS feed and when the web page loaded I sat there for a moment stunned and very confused because the home page that I just downloaded looked very much like my own but it had a few things missing.
It Was a Complete Duplicate
My company logo and header graphic were gone and in their place was Raj Creatives, Multimedia Designer, the title tags no longer said “Graphic Design and Web Design from Durham Region” but “Graphic Design and Web Design from Rajasekaran”.
WTF?
Because I was still waking up the first thing I thought was that my WordPress site got hacked, but a quick glance at the address bar soon put those fears to rest for another day and as I began to look at the site much closer I immediately saw that it was an exact copy of my hard work that some bush league graphic and web designer, sorry “Multimedia Designer” ripped off and is using it to showcase his shoddy portfolio and other works he is trying to take credit for.
This isn’t the first time I have been a victim of plagiarism, it is the third and funny enough they all have been this year but this Mr. S. Rajasekaran is by far the worst offender that I have caught. They say that plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery but this guy has still got my content on his front page, my copyright, legal notice, and link to my old website and XHTML strict compliance.
I have been freelancing in the design business now for almost ten years and most of the last decade has been really tough, the internet bubble burst just before I finished college, there was absolutely no industry employers when I was coming out of school and studio jobs were nonexistent because most of the advertising and online marketing companies folded or cut back and all the experienced designers started taking all the freelance work.
I Know How Hard it is
I am pretty understanding and I know where this guy is coming from but the more I looked at what he did to my work the more angry I got. What if for whatever reasons his pilfered version of my website takes months or even years to be deleted from the Free Web Hosting Area servers (where it rests at the moment) and a potential client looking for me finds the stolen page, it does contain a lot of my content and what if they think that I do lousy work?
Original Website and My Bread and Butter
This isn’t just my blood, sweat and tears, it’s my livelihood and something I take very seriously. I don’t mind in the least that you copied my website to your hard drive, I do it quite often myself as it is the best way to learn. But when I get down to creating I come at it from a different angle, build it from scratch and try to do it better, I don’t steal.
The difference between you and I is that I always want to improve my skills by knowing how things work so I can offer a better product while you just take and then put your name on it hoping to make a quick buck, its people like you that devalue this profession, have no respect for intellectual property and make many clients so distrustful of us.
Two Great Quotes to Think About Mr. Rajasekaran
“Good artists copy. Great artists steal.”
Pablo Picasso.
“The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources”
Albert Einstein.
The website in question(I don’t know how long it will be available so I have some screen caps and would you believe that this guy has actually watermarked some of his own work with his name and phone number …lol )
Now Since I got all the business out of the way I would like to thank you for providing me with the unexpected opportunity to once again utilize my blog to practice search engine optimization techniques to better position my keywords by allowing me to talk about my graphic and web design company Digital Deceptions.
On the front page of my website I have a link to SlideShare where you can download the presentation I did at WordCamp Toronto 2010 on how to use WordPress and Social Media to Win an Election, on your version of my site you have your resume …lol.
Once a Thief, Was That a TV Show or a Movie?
I read your resume and even all your experience is a lie, judging by the bang up graphics butcher job you did with my work there is no possible way on earth you could have designed the web pages you say you did, plus all those sites you supposedly designed have got the design companies names on the bottom of them. Who do you think you are?
The Best is Yet to Come
At the bottom of Mr. S. Rajasekaran’s resume he has a declaration which reads:
I, hereby declare that the information furnished above is true to the best of my knowledge. If given an opportunity to work in your esteemed organization, I can perform to the best of my capabilities in a way that is satisfies the organization’s need and my career thirst.
Isn’t That Just Priceless?
Well if anyone is interested in Mr. Rajasekaran’s Multimedia Design services you can give him a call on his mobile at (988) 425-1897 day or night, mail or stop by his flat if you happen to be in India, he can be found at No.18, Seevaram 2nd Street, Perungudi, Chennai – 600 096 or you could just email him rajasekaran.gpcp@gmail.com. And yes ladies he is single as mentioned in his resume and if anyone does happen to contact my friend Mr. Rajasekaran don’t forget to wish that asshole a happy birthday, he turns 23 on May 27 which is next week and please do tell him that Duncan sent you.
Borderline obsessed today with all this? Yes maybe a little but it just happens to be Canada Day May 24 long weekend and I’m going to chalk it up to timing because I usually don’t have this much time on my hands 8p
Trish on Wed, 25th Aug 2010 8:31 pm
OMG Duncan, you are so tolerant, most would have started a lawsuit. Posting this is much wiser too!
PS: I LOVE your website!!!!
Duncan on Tue, 31st Aug 2010 2:38 pm
Glad you enjoyed it. I think it was definitely more entertaining than going the legal route …lol Thanks for your comment much appreciated
Duncan 8]