Impersonating Website

  • Unknown's avatar
    nsesovereign · Member ·

    Hi,

    My entire website was stolen by another user. They took the website, recreated it exactly (same theme, same words, same everything – they are directly impersonating me and my website, using art I commissioned and paid for myself, etc. The only difference is they are changing the credit to artwork and the written content to themselves and translating it into a different language). Is there any way to lodge a formal complaint for impersonation, like how YouTube will warn/suspend other accounts that impersonate others? I mention YouTube because they also impersonated our organization’s channel and it was shut down for impersonation there, so this isn’t just a one off accidental thing. I’ve managed our site just almost a year and theirs is less than a month old. I recently changed our theme/design to differentiate ourselves to our customers/viewers and warned them to stay away but this is still a pretty obvious, word for word plagiarism and intentional impersonation.

    Thanks for any help. Been a real frustrating thorn in my side.

    WP.com: Yes
    Correct account: Yes

    The blog I need help with is: (visible only to moderators and staff)

  • supernovia · Staff ·

    I’m sorry to hear that, @nsesovereign! Is the site hosted here with us? If so, here’s how to file a report:
    https://wordpress.com/support/report-blogs/

    If it isn’t hosted with us, use a site like whoishostingthis.com to find their host. Then go to that host’s site and look for an “abuse” link (often found at the bottom of the host’s site). You should be able to report there.

  • Unknown's avatar
    nsesovereign · Member ·

    Hi,

    It is hosted by you. I did submit a report but I struggle to understand which category best fits. Would it be under abusive?

  • staff-blorbo · Staff ·

    That would work for this case, thanks!

  • Unknown's avatar
    nsesovereign · Member ·

    Thanks for the speedy reply and help. I sent a report there.

  • staff-blorbo · Staff ·

    Thanks, we handle all reports in the order received, but we’ll definitely get to it ASAP!

  • Unknown's avatar
    nsesovereign · Member ·

    Understood, thanks for the help! Very quick and polite. Out of curiosity, how long do they usually take to check?

    Thanks and apologies for asking the question, I could have probably figured this out myself now that I think about it.

  • staff-blorbo · Staff ·

    It varies depending on a variety of factors, but definitely no more than a week.

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