RECENTLY, I RECEIVED an email from the Copyright and Media Usage Department of a stock photo company accusing me of illegally using an image of theirs on my website.

They included the photo, telling me the image’s creator relies on the copyright fees paid and to reply to the email, and they would be happy to assist with more details. They don’t know me, but I never choose to avoid paying royalties to someone who earns a living from their creative work.

I called the company, and they confirmed that the person contacting me works there but refused to give me their last name or to connect me.

Then, I contacted the company I purchased the picture in question from. In less than 5 minutes, I had confirmation in writing of the File License – Copy of the photo – File ID number – Size – License – Purchase Date – and Copyright Information, which included the artist’s name.

I emailed the paperwork to the company accusing me of theft, asking to confirm receipt of my material and to mark the matter closed.

Two minutes later I got a thank you (with no apology) and a statement saying the matter was closed.

Then, the person proceeded to sell me their product, packages, discounts, free images and to contact them directly if I needed ‘further assistance.’

Why would I ever trust their services or recommend them?

I’m grateful to Seth Godin, who writes about scamming in his Blog – “Convenience and scams” – September 19, 2023.
Seth prepared me for this emotional challenge. I remember these words from the post.

“The scam era is upon us. Aided by AI, borderless currency and the internet of things,
there are more people than ever before making a living hustling to steal, impersonate,
defraud and otherwise violate our trust.”

Don’t scam. Always sell with Integrity. Trust is crucial.

Thanks – Michael (he, him)

Please share this Daily with your tribes.
This matters too – Trust and Integrity.

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