Picture Thieves

So I'm browsing Alibaba a few days ago and I come across a Chinese seller who has thieved at least 10 of my eBay item photos (necklaces) and is selling them for pennies. Seller's entire Alibaba store inventory is made up of stolen designs/eBay photos from various eBay users, mostly North Americans. This includes MANY original handcrafted items by a US seller. And this is what the **** Chinese are resorting to now: they are stealing our designs, our photos and selling OUR products in bulk for $0.10 a PC. So now I'm watermarking all my photos. What a pain in the behind.

Everywhere I look, people are taking the easy way out at others' expense. And I'm so sick and tired of these Canadian sellers who lie to their customers claiming their items are Pandora and selling them for double market value, hoarding the search & browse with their fraud.
And no, flagging doesn't work 99% of the time.

Why is it SO difficult for people to run an honest online store without cheating, lying and stealing?
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Picture Thieves

"are you serious or joking?"

 

I am very serious. 

 

I am always aggressive with crooks. About fifteen years ago I had a Canadian buyer place a bid on one of my $5,000 lot.  He refused to pay.  I sent him a bill for $500 handling fee.  It took about three weeks (and I had to contact one of his family member to shame him) but I got paid my $500.

 

There is nothing to lose in sending the crook an invoice.  He may think twice about doing it again.

 

"If he doesn't pay the invoice, I can open a paypal dispute? "  No.

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Picture Thieves

Contact the Chinese seller and ask for his email address

 

Once you have the email address send him a PayPal invoice for $100.00 for using your images.

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Picture Thieves


@eurobeads wrote:
So I'm browsing Alibaba a few days ago and I come across a Chinese seller who has thieved at least 10 of my eBay item photos (necklaces) and is selling them for pennies. Seller's entire Alibaba store inventory is made up of stolen designs/eBay photos from various eBay users, mostly North Americans. This includes MANY original handcrafted items by a US seller. And this is what the **** Chinese are resorting to now: they are stealing our designs, our photos and selling OUR products in bulk for $0.10 a PC. So now I'm watermarking all my photos. What a pain in the behind.

Everywhere I look, people are taking the easy way out at others' expense. And I'm so sick and tired of these Canadian sellers who lie to their customers claiming their items are Pandora and selling them for double market value, hoarding the search & browse with their fraud.
And no, flagging doesn't work 99% of the time.

Why is it SO difficult for people to run an honest online store without cheating, lying and stealing?

I don't know, it's like people who put "gold" and "silver" in their titles when they are selling things which are not "gold" or "silver"!

 

 



"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.
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Picture Thieves

I suggest you "watermark" your images... this will help protect them from being copied.

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Picture Thieves

Gold and silver can be used to describe a color as well.   Do you think that it shouldn't be used to describe jewellery as a color in the title at all or does it depend on where in the title it is being used?

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Picture Thieves

It's keyword spamming when it's in the title of a jewellery listing.

 

It's misleading when it's used in a title for a jewellery listing where "gold" & "silver" are commonly used to describe the material the item is made from.

 

"silver alloy", "gold toned alloy" both are weasel words that tell you nothing.

 

 



"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.
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Picture Thieves

Pierre are you serious or joking? I already have his email and all his other contact info on Alibaba. Send him a paypal invoice? Will this actually work? If he doesn't pay the invoice, I can open a paypal dispute? Well, wouldn't that be wonderful 🙂

The silver/gold thing, to me it's ok to put silver/gold in the title to describe color as long as the material is clearly described. The problem is people who put "925 sterling silver" in the title and description and they are selling alloy. There are tons of them in Canada. Just search "925" or "sterling" refine by lowest price first and you will see the culprits!

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Picture Thieves

What does "silver alloy" mean? 1% silver, 10% silver or just some metal that has a silver colour?

 

What does "gold toned alloy" mean? Is there any actual gold or just the colour that is "gold"?

 

Normally I wouldn't care but you are the one who commented on a lack of "honesty".

 

 



"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.
Message 8 of 19
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Picture Thieves

"are you serious or joking?"

 

I am very serious. 

 

I am always aggressive with crooks. About fifteen years ago I had a Canadian buyer place a bid on one of my $5,000 lot.  He refused to pay.  I sent him a bill for $500 handling fee.  It took about three weeks (and I had to contact one of his family member to shame him) but I got paid my $500.

 

There is nothing to lose in sending the crook an invoice.  He may think twice about doing it again.

 

"If he doesn't pay the invoice, I can open a paypal dispute? "  No.

Message 9 of 19
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Picture Thieves

FYI, yes I overreacted (apologies to other members), but really? You bring up something you have zero experience with, make "fact statements" and kick me when I'm already down for no good reason? You sell tapes and DVDs-clearly you have zero history of either buying or selling jewelry. People who buy/sell jewelry know the difference between alloy, sterling, copper, plastic etc. It was offensive and out of line for you to imply that I'm dishonest. What is dishonest is you charging $4 in shipping fees for an item that costs half that price in postage.
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Picture Thieves

If buyers actually knew the difference they wouldn't be buying millions of cheap trinkets from China thinking they were actually getting real gold or sterling silver.

 

If my listing says I charge $4 for shipping that is EXACTLY what I charge, what the shipping actually costs me isn't relevant at all.

 

 



"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.
Message 11 of 19
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Picture Thieves

Anonymous
Not applicable

How can you ask for email address when the eBay system don't allow it?

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Picture Thieves

It is not eBay.  Please read the thread from the beginning.

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Picture Thieves

This post is about DISHONESTY: stealing photos, LYING to buyers about brand, material etc. You are talking about ignorant buyers or those who don't speak English failing to UNDERSTAND what they are buying. Dish it out, now take it:

If a buyer is told the truth about what material something is made of it and they buy it, they are not being misled or conned into anything. EVERYBODY (except you, apparently), understands the difference between wood, ceramic, plastic, paper, aluminum, 14kt yellow gold, cotton, alloy, etc). You are making all kinds of random false assumptions about everything and presenting it as fact.

FYI, why do you assume people who buy cheap things from China are being misled? They are not buying because they think it's real gold, they are buying because it's cheap. The Chinese sellers do not claim they are selling "real gold & diamonds" for $1. Just the other day I bought a plastic shower cap for $1. Did I think it was made of 24kt pure gold disguised as plastic? Or did I think it was a Louis Vuitton brand shower cap for $1? Did they fool me to get my dollar?

You are selling tapes. So you are fooling people. What kind of tape are you selling? Tape recorders, scotch tape, tapeworms? It is misleading for you to put the word "tape" in your title because someone looking for masking tape might come across your add. Do you see how ridiculous that sounds?

And you have the nerve to say "what the shipping actually costs me isn't relevant"? Haha really? Ask the average buyer how they feel about that. Most would call you a crook for charging them a certain ship fee and paying less postage. Not saying that's right (on the contrary) but that's how buyers feel. I've seen TONS of negative feedbacks from Buyers who felt robbed by the shipping fee.
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Picture Thieves

Back to the topic of picture thieving, I've sent the guy an invoice. Will wait and see what happens if anything. Thanks for the interesting advice Pierre, I never would have thought about doing that.
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Picture Thieves

US seller was using my pictures for more than a month and he sold more then 10 pcs of the same product i emailed him contact ebay few times and what.My hard work was filling someone else pocket.......

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Picture Thieves

eurobeads:   This isn't intended to put  your product down in any way.  In fact, I've often wondered why what you are doing isn't done more often.

 

I recognized your charms right away as those sold by Chinese sellers for a few pennies/charm (literally).

 

These charms are very common from Chinese sellers and for every style of charm there are hundreds of sellers.

 

How do you know they've "borrowed" your photos and why would they?

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Picture Thieves

I thought you were selling finished pieces but I just read your description.

 

 It looks like you're selling the charm without the chain and setting but picturing it like a completed piece?

Your description says  "Does not include chain."

 

 

If that right?

 

 

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Picture Thieves


@pierrelebel wrote:

Contact the Chinese seller and ask for his email address

 

Once you have the email address send him a PayPal invoice for $100.00 for using your images.


Good advice. I have other sellers on ebay and elsewhere stealing my photos on a regular basis. Reporting it is s effective as banging my head with the phone. Instead, I will send the thieves invoices now for the use of my photos, I bet that will stop it quicker than anything else I could do. 

 

Thanks, Pierre,

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