Some B'Stard has nicked my article!

[Ian R McAllister]

As part of my SEO activity, like many I author various articles. As part of this, I have a procedure to check the status of my original articles using copyscape. In my use today, it alerted me to an unauthorised copy of one of my articles from eZine articles.

The original at eZine articles is here, while the copy is held on a system called ArticleSnatch, which you can see here - credited to some other person.

I have tried as eZineArticles suggest contacting ArticleSnatch, but their reporting system suggests that the email is not getting through.

Help - what do I do next?!

[Nikki Pilkington]

Gits - happens to me all the time - I've posted a comment on it to point out the original - I'd suggest you and everyone else who can does too.

[Ian R McAllister]

Thanks Nikki!

Their complaints system doesn't seem to be an operating system, so I have sent them a Twitter message

[Ian R McAllister]

And another version now, at Amazines.com - B'Stard!!! All they are trying to "promote" is a kiddies games network

[George Montgomery]

Unfortunately, this happens a lot.

Why not post a taster section of your article with a link back to your website for more - where its a pdf or something.

Rgds

George

[Beautyscientist]

I can't see your article on that link. Maybe they have dropped it since you kicked up a fuss?

In any case I would try and get in touch with the actual content thieves and tell them you intend to report them to Google if they don't stop using your content.

[Ian R McAllister]

Thanks people! I used Copyscape, traced the seven versions he had filed as his/her own, and got them removed. Much as though one sites "contact" system didn't work, I found them on Twitter!

[Binh Zientek]

It has happened to me too Ian and I was able to leave a comment on the website. But I also complained to google as well. It is a disgrace.

[Ian R McAllister]

OK, this gets nuttier and nuttier - I need an experts view of this, because I ain't got a clue... not that I ever do anyway!

After I opened this discussion I found nearly 50 copies of my original article - most via copyscape and via a backlink watch on the hijackers website. Most owners of the article websites and press release where they had pasted were helpful and removed within an hour/day, with only a couple unaware of the law or having their feedback systems not operating. One one owner in Turkey still doesn't get the message, but there goes!

After starting the exercise, my original article was at result number 15 or there abouts on Google - can't complain! My eZine articles version was at result number 10, and taking 150hits a day. Click through conversion rate wasn't great at around 5% - have found my articles vary from 35% to 2%, need to work on that - but better than nothing. The copies appeared from result 8 through to page 20

After removing most of the copies, Google banned my page - hence my other thread here. Then, suddenly - and without a lot of a fanfare - the original page was suddenly unbanned and appears this evening on page one of Google, result 4.

I am guessing that the magic Google system has figured out/learnt/adjusted to what is "original" and what is "copy" and made appropriate adjustments? And all that I went through is the system of up/down, remove copies, reinsert original? I haven't got a clue, but would be very appreciative of any input!

This has been a huge learning exercise, and something I would not have contemplated addressing 12month ago were it not for the combination of learning from NikkiP and 30Day Challenge!

[Nikki Pilkington]

Blimey, what a saga! Seems that it ended OK though, so that's good!

Can't explain what happened without some proper thinking, and my brain is AWOL today. but glad you got it sorted.

[Leigh Quantrill]

Pfft, brainless people.