Most people who know me, or have noticed my interaction with the fairer sex, would probably tell you that there’s almost nothing I wouldn’t do to please them! That being the case you’re probably wondering what’s taking me so long in answering a fair maiden’s request that was placed some seven days ago.
That fair maiden was Colleen of Kennewick Real Estate who, in the post about Speeding Up Your Blog in order to keep Google and your readers happy, asked the following;
On an unrelated note Sire, a blog entry from you about the Digiprove you are using might be a good topic. Until now, I’ve never seen it nor heard of it. Just a thought, as I haven’t seen anything written on it, or other ways to protect against content theft. Might be a good topic.
For those of you who don’t know Colleen, she and her husband Joe are in the Real Estate game and have many wonderful properties for sale, including this one at West Pasco Washington which has stunning views.
Anyway Colleen, sorry for the delay but you know what they say, better late than never and I can only hope that it was worth the wait.
It all came about last December when some moron decided to steal a whole heap of my posts which eventuated in my post about stolen content, and then a followup post on the final outcome. I would recommend that post to anyone who would like to know what to do if the same thing ever happened to them because there are some great comments there which helped me and I am sure can help others in return.
Although most people know that they own copyright to all material that they post on their blog it can sometimes be difficult to prove it and the necessity of proof can be required when chasing those fools that pilfer your posts. This lead me in a search of a plugin that would certify to everyone that I am the sole owner of material posted on this blog.
The result of that search resulted in the installation of Digiprove. As they say on their website:
Digiprove’s online copyright proving service is well-known to creators. Now we’re making it even easier to secure the copyright of your blog posts. The “Copyright Proof” WordPress plugin automatically Digiproves the content of every published blog post (new or edited). This gives you indisputable proof of the content, and the date and time of publication.
Not only that, but for every post that you make:
- A notice and icon will be displayed at the foot of your blog post referencing the actual Digiprove certificate.
- You will receive by email the digitally-signed certificate which protects your post
- If you prefer, the certifying page will have a link-back to your blog site.
So much more effective than simply including a copyright notice.
You will notice an icon at the end of this post that signifies that this post is copyrighted. Clicking on that badge will take you to a numbered certificate that is dated showing me as the copyright owner. There is no way that anyone can argue that fact.
Something to note is that the plugin, though fully functional, is in Beta mode which is why it is currently free of charge. The website does state the following;
Once the first formal release of Copyright Proof is made, we will apply some commerce! However it is our intention to keep the service free-of-charge to personal/hobbyist users and to educational establishments and registered charities.
While it is still completely functional as a free user I no longer have access to certain sections of the website which are reserved for paying members. Cost for personal use is $8 per month or $80 per year but for now I am completely happy as a non paying user.
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This sounds like a great plugin for protecting your content. I usually run my sites through Copyscape to see if anyone is stealing content and that works out fine for me. I would recommend it for websites that are not blogs, and therefore can’t use a plugin like this. A few months ago I found someone who was completely ripping off one of my sites and after a strongly worded email to him he immediately took down the stolen content.
Twitter: AussieSire
I’ve heard of Copyscape. Isn’t that limited though in regards to searches unless you are a paying member?
Thanks for stopping by to comment.
Hi Sire. Thanks Colleen – if it wasn’t for your comment I might not know about Digiprove plugin.
This is awesome information. I’m going to check out your other posts about this topic too.
@Ileane
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Twitter: AussieSire
Glad you liked it Ileane and lucky for us we had Colleen to provide the kick up the rear end that I needed.
Good post, and that’s fcuked mate! I think it’s something about the ‘wassup’ bit. I used to have a bright orange mini with the number plate WASSUP (yeah I know, sad – BUT OH SO AWESOME) and I tell you what, everytime I went to UNSW for the day some dick would try and rip it off (sometimes they did)
SO the answer to the rhetorical question of WASSUP? is “not much, but if you could just look over there for a minute and ignore my shadiness”
See you soon Sire
Twitter: AussieSire
Sorry Alex, but I’m still scratching my head as to the relevance of this comment to the post.
Sorry Sire, was just referencing the wassup part of the domain name in regards to this comment: “It all came about last December when some moron decided to steal a whole heap of my posts”
I guess the comment only relates on the level of people stealing from you, apologies if this was not the forum for the comment.
Twitter: AussieSire
No sweat, reckon I was still rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.
Hi Peter!
I just want to point out that Digiprove does nothing to prevent people from stealing your content. All it does is allow you to prove your ownership of one particular version of it.
An idiot thief (the vast majority) will just copy/paste your content verbatim, and end up looking like the idiot they are in the process. This thief is easily outed and you’ll have no trouble proving you’re the good guy.
The smart thief (is that an oxymoron?) will copy your content and will go to the trouble of removing anything traceable to you such as Digiprove additions. He’ll manipulate timestamps and dates. He’ll even have his own Digiprove A/C and will have his own certificate generated for your article. His certificate won’t have the same digital fingerprint as yours because his URL is different and the timestamps are different. From Digiprove’s POV it is a completely different and separate article.
Is that scenario likely? Probably not. But it would be easily doable and setting it all up in a automatic, scripted way would be trivial to say the least.
Am I saying that Digiprove isn’t a good worthwhile service? No, of course not. It is a great service and will work 99.9% of the time. But it isn’t something that’s foolproof. Just be aware of that.
Kind regards,
Steve
Twitter: AussieSire
Yep people will still steal it but although they may change dates and stuff and have their own Digiprove account the fact that my certificate is dated before theirs will prove that I own the copyright.
When I was having hassles with the moron who stole my comment his host wanted me to be able to prove that the content was mine. It would have been a lot easier if I had this plugin at the time.
“He’ll manipulate timestamps and dates”
If the thief manipulates his timestamps and dates so that it displays that his (copied) post is much older than yours (the original), is their a way for the original writer to prove that his is the original?
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Twitter: AussieSire
I suppose you could find out which one Google first picked it up in the SERPS?
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Hi Sire,
It’s been a while since I’ve been by, got to missing you so …..
As far as scraped content, a good Blog is so fluid that at least with my posts, I get indexed same day with Google. If the content is scraped it just spreads my message, especially if the content is series related. In other words you do a series on auto-responders for a week. Content thieves are not really vigilant. So they may get some but not all. Why get in a twist?
However, if on the other hand you are releasing details on design for a new iPhone and someone wants to cop your content. Than that person can look forward to a visit from the local authorities.
Twitter: AussieSire
Thing is Jeffrey that you’re not getting credit for you post and unless you’ve a link in that post you’re not getting anything at all.
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Good Point! Thank Goodness it isn’t any worse than it already is!
I’m giving it a go. The install is straight forward and it’s one of those plugins that quietly works in the background. Good find – since my old copyright plugin stopped working I’ve been after an alternative for a while.
Twitter: AussieSire
I reckon you will like it Ray. Apart from doing it’s job it’s appearance is very professional.
Hey Sire,
I did notice it and meant to ask about it a couple times. Oops.
Very cool, and will be investigated further. On initial look-see I didn’t notice a whole lot needed above the free for the common user.
I’m doing the free thing, Dennis.
Let me know if you notice you “miss” anything by going free.
Twitter: AussieSire
The paid version just gives members a whole lot more options like accessing the individual certificates online and such.
I’ll have to read it fully, there has to be more then that. You said your pretty covered legal wise in the free version.
Oh btw, speaking of better late then never – I tweeted those other two posts on your stolen content. ;)
Twitter: AussieSire
Thanks Dennis, that’s much appreciated.
I’m definitely going to check this one out, Sire, so I can find out what one gets for the $8 a month part. Great find; something like this wasn’t even on my radar.
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Twitter: AussieSire
I’ve been using it for awhile Mitch. Reckon most people haven’t noticed because they can’t see it due to all the ads on the blog
I reckon it’s a good deal for those professionals and such who really need to make sure that their content remains secure.
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I’ve just loaded it and, I think, set up my account. I got this menu page on the browser, and I’m not sure if I’m supposed to do something else or if it’s set. Guess I’ll have to wait until my latest post shows up tomorrow to see if it’s there.
And you’re right in one respect, that being that I don’t think most of us noticed you had it there, but I doubt it’s because of the ads.
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Twitter: AussieSire
It only shows once you either publish or edit a post. If you were to edit an old post it will pop up and you will also receive an email confirmation.
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Wow, I went back and edited an old post, and it worked great. I see my copyright; looks neat. And I got the email; hope I’m not supposed to keep those things.
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Mitch – you paying or free member?
Twitter: AussieSire
I don’t keep them Mitch. They are stored on site but that’s one of the member privileges. If you click on that icon it will take you to the online certificate that’s enough for me, for now at least.
I think content theft is a concern that most of us don’t pay attention to until we feel its ill effects. I’m happy that you shared this application to your readers.
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Twitter: AussieSire
I agree most don’t pay attention because they are oblivious to the fact, as was I until it was brought to my attention.
Wouldn’t your own content be indexed first or something and that is undeniable proof that it is yours? I have never had my content stolen before, so I don’t know how hard it is to prove anything.
Well, well, thanks for the mention, and thanks for listening to a post request. We had scores of pages copied a few years ago and took a great deal of effort to get the stolen content removed. We’ll definitely check out Digiprove Sire. Again, thanks for the recognition. Feeling a bit famous today! :)
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It’s me that should be thanking you Colleen because if it wasn’t for your comment this post may never have been written.
Hi Sire
I recently noticed a sudden increase in my bandwidth usage and contacted my hosting service to see if there was a problem.
They told me that a “Web Scraper” kept visiting my site and that they had blocked the IP for me.
Never even heard of a Scraper but I have now.
Looks like content theft is alive and kicking.
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Twitter: AussieSire
Bastards! :furious_tb:
Have you done a search to see where those posts ended up?
Not yet
But I’ll take a look today.
Keith Davis recently posted…Laugh and the world…
I was not aware of such plugin, thanks for sharing it. Now my writing will be more secure.
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Twitter: AussieSire
It will be more secure with it than without it.
Thanks Sire… I’ll have to check out this plugin when I get time.
Twitter: AussieSire
Yeah, I know what it’s like to be busy Rose. Hope you’re well.
I’m ok.. Feeling guilty. :(
Sounds like an awesome version of Copyscape but then what happens to my protection after the plug-in goes paid version as I’m almost 100% sure folks who make money off their blogs will be charged for it’s usage.
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They reckon they will remain free for personal users, so I reckon most people will be safe from being charged.
I must be seeing double. I just checked out their website and they already have a billing plan for Personal users ready to go when they launch the paid version of their services
Twitter: AussieSire
Yes but that is only because there are certain benefits to being a member but the plugin still works as a free version otherwise they would lose out on all the free publicity.
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Looks exactly what I was looking for, thanks for posting that! I have a couple of sites where I have put a lot of work in and would hate seeing it scrapped by some … Stupid question, do you know if it works also with pages or only with blog posts. And when you updated something, will the older date be replaced with the newer or not? Thanks, SY
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Twitter: AussieSire
I’m pretty sure it works on pages and I’m also pretty sure it posts the latest date. I keep an eye out for it next time I update a post.
This looks like it would be perfect to prevent people from stealing your content on both blogs and webpages. Is this compatible with general webpages?
Twitter: AussieSire
As far as I know, and it won’t prevent them from stealing it but it will allow you to prove the content is yours.
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