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84 Times Artists Caught Companies And Fake Artists Copying Their Work And Selling It As Their Own
Thanks to the internet it's never been easier for people to rip off something that somebody else created and pass it off as their own. It isn't just individuals who do it either, but major well-known companies like New Look, Forever21, and even Disney. We wrote about one such case before, where artist Tuesday Bassen discovered that Spanish retailer Zara had stolen her designs and were using them without crediting her, and now Bored Panda has compiled an extended list of people who have experienced similar unfair treatment at the hands of people too lazy, or too talentless, to create something for themselves. Scroll down to see for yourself, and let us know how you feel in the comments.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Art By Katie Woodger Stolen By Disney
Charm Valenzuela 8 years ago
The best way for it is to post things like this on facebook, twitter etc... Let's see how disney would quiet down a raging fire
Randy Allos 8 years ago
I would crowdfund a lawsuit, with the reward/payout being a percentage of the settlement if you win.
Randy Allos 8 years ago
I would expect them to quickly offer a settlement once they realize they won't get away with it. Especially if you make more noise with local media etc.
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PurpleUnicorn 8 years ago
Looks like an exact replica to me, they haven't changed it at all. Good luck with getting some redress!
Sarah Eldridge 8 years ago
Where did you find that bag and are you SURE that Disney crafted it? There's a good chance it's a knock off company. PS, I googled "Disney Alice in Wonderland cosmetic bag" and not one image of that bag showed up anywhere.
Ryan Rogers 8 years ago
Also the screenshot is from the Disney Store website
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Amaranthim Talon 8 years ago
File a DMCA takedown notice- be ready to prove it's your work. http://www.dmca.com/FAQ/What-is-a-DMCA-Takedown
Roxy Eastland 8 years ago
Considering how quick Disney are to bring aggressive legal action against the smallest, most remote, business producing an item with an unlicensed Disney image, this behaviour is doubly reprehensible. I hope that she does seek legal advice because she does have rights.
Benj 8 years ago
You had "so much respect"? For DISNEY??!! They are, and always have been business first.
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
They don't respect any other artist that are not designing for them.
Load More Replies... Sarah Britt 8 years ago
What I find particularly messed up about this is that Disney themselves are notorious for going after people to protect their own copyrights. So much so that they've been known to send cease and desist letters that threaten lawsuits to the most small time instances of people using their copywriten imagine. For example, they done that to multiple very small time daycares and schools who dared to paint images of their characters on their walls for decoration. And yet, here they are pulling this c**p. I think her best bet would be to try and make this go as viral as possible
La Dung 8 years ago
Gonna be hard... good luck ... Hope some1 that can actually help you read this
La Dung 8 years ago
Also do contact them to see what they say bout this. Hope for the best :)
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Sari Kadison-Shapiro 8 years ago
You should definitely see a lawyer. Some may do it for a contingency fee (You only pay if they win money for you). Mostly, it would be inexpensive to have a "cease and desist" letter written. They would be obligated to pay you. People Magazine used a postcard I designed in their issue on the Eighties. They didn't credit me or pay me. They did both after receiving a letter from an attorney.
Buzz Covington 8 years ago
Am I the only one here who thinks YOU may be liable for copyright infringement? Were you licensed to produce an (obvious) Alice in Wonderland image for public consumption? Not trying to be mean, but I think they may come back at you.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
You do realize that Disney didn't make up the Alice in Wonderland stories, right? It's been in the public domain for quite some time now.
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April W 8 years ago
This, and nearly everything else, was made in China. Disney most likely had nothing to do with creating this image. 99% likely the artwork was submitted by a third party and approved by Disney Consumer Products. Try the legal route, but the copycat may not be who you expect
Tamara Keegan 8 years ago
Get a lawyer and file a lawsuit. You just have to prove the artwork is yours and that it was produced by you before Disney stole the image and started using it.
Julie McIver 8 years ago
I am so very sorry this has happened to you. I have included a link to a website that specialise in DMCA takedown and can assist you in getting this taken down and getting compensation .. http://bit.ly/2xE4EdC
Emelda Madalot 6 years ago
call Disney via a lawyer if you feel you need back up but actually copyright is not a seperate entity you need to add to your works but an internationally recognized automatic right that every person, maker, creator, artist and non-artist alike has over the work they produce and if you can demonstrate your ownership and use of the image by sending an email (for example) with images of your sketches and especially in your case will be very easy to prove proprietary rights because you can show screenshots of the work on tumbler and prove that you were the first to upload the image to the internet. Disney is all too aware that it is very easy for any investigator or IT expert to pinpoint the exact date and time and IP address, location etc first posted an image or text or ANYTHING on the internet and they would be loathe to be publicly shamed for this very common but shabby practice. If you call them or better EMAIL them they will make you an offer but actually just spend the couple hundr
Emelda Madalot 6 years ago
... hundred bucks a IP (intellectual property) lawyer will shaft you to email/call them on your behalf and sit back and wait for Disney’s offer but depending on sales and usage of your image i would expect to be able to holiday in style for a year to focus on more great art lol. srsly. you got this. dont think you are powerless because you are talented and you have power and are protected by laws if only you have the gumption to believe it and take an action on this.
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RAT DISNEY 7 years ago
Disney and Google in conspiracy to steal my registered play High School Miserable that I wrote and registered was raped endlessly and capitol crimes and Rico Act violations by both defendants against me DISNEY Evilprises inc and Google removed and hid my video and replaced it with a Disney video of same title and subject matter what could High School Miserable be about but a miserable time in High School
T.J. Guinard 7 years ago
The amazing irony and hypocrisy of this article being a 100% direct copy of from another website is next level!! The original article was posted 9 months ago. Every comment on here is from 8 months ago!
Emelda Madalot 6 years ago
nope. copyright is automatic. no one needs to ‘take out’ copyright on their work to have the right to be recognized as the original creator HOWEVER with unscrupulous corporations routinely shafting the poor and workers etc (and each other) it can be prudent and efficient for those who can afford to do so to pay to trademark and copyright and even: the real scoundrels will pay to have work they STOLE copyrighted to them (by paying for a certificate ‘validated’ by ip lawyer n the ‘relevant’ governing body (usually national less often international and sometimes industry specific...) . whatevs IT DOESNT MATTER AT ALL IF A PERSON OR ORGANISATION CAN PROVE THEY WERE THE CREATORS (who, not having sold the rights to an object/work, ARE BY DEFINITION the owners/copyright holders). In this case the internet can prove that the artist above was the first to post the image online. She will even be able to produce sketches and even REPRODUCE how she did it in court if Disney wanted to challenge
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marnidarr 8 years ago
I have to agree w/Charm on this one. I'll do my part and share this article. What Disney has done is wrong. There are struggling artists out there that work damn hard for their art, and Disney should not get away with stealing it. Talk to a lawyer too, if you can. Actions from lawyers tend to get their attn. Ask friends and relatives to share your story too. Good luck! The painting is beautiful!
Katinka Min 8 years ago
This happens all the time. GAP and many other large brands do this - even though they HAVE the money to pay artists who are in dire need of some finances. But they know that a poor artists can do f*ck all so they do what they want, regardless of the law. Sickening.
Sharon Parker 8 years ago
Disney screwed up your beautiful painting by surrounding the image with their characters. Like painting Mickey mouse standing next to Mona Lisa. Get a lawyer.
Lyn Moffett 8 years ago
Keep shouting all over social media i.e. Twitter Facebook etc and see a solicitor about your rights. Did you patent it? Suppose you didn't think to at the time but hopefully if you shout loud enough you'll be heard . Good luck. Be nice to know how you get on
Tanya Kysel'ova 8 years ago
what if the Disney management do not know of it and it is just a fault of one dishonest designer. maybe you need to send a letter and let them know first
Elizabeth Scarborough 8 years ago
Disney has it's own art department filled with talented people why would they steal someone's art. Really think about this for a minute. I'm an avid Alice and Disney fan and have never seen this art work at their stores. This could all be a hoax and a fake Disney store screen grab. Don't believe everything you see on the webs.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
It wouldn't be the first time they've pulled something like this. They are a for profit company so it's not surprising.
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Rã Field 8 years ago
I would like to say to not only this Artist, BUT ALL ,& i have taken a look at everyones Art.I myself am a specialist Artist in many an area,& my whole life, even with some ‘so called security’still i had//& still do to this day have ‘anything’ i create & design stolen.I have resorted to having a good look overall at how peoples’ behaving has been for many a hundreds to thousands of years,& nothing has changed so i changed my ‘thought’. Firstly i have had No family known & have made millions for others,& got a very small pushed on payment to make the Law of Business do exactly what they do best; looking after our criminal society, however the payments at least kept me independant in the way of having a roof over my head & the correct ‘treatments of medical’ i require, as i was born with a serious sickness/diability additionally, though when ever i get low spirited i know what keeps me alive, its my excellent skills with Arts.The reality is know who u are,there are some areas changing..
Doug Thomas 8 years ago
Disney would sue if you did the same thing with anything they produce.
Tammy Chapman 8 years ago
That really, really sucks. I do hope you have either a copyright on it or have some other way to prove you created it. The fact that 9+ people have it tattooed on their bodies means that if anyone saw their tattoos, they could recreate it from that alone. And if you allowed it to be seen by others, or used as a tattoo without it being copywritten first, then you are probably screwed. But if you have proof, any kind of proof, a copyright, even testimony from your college art teacher or classmates that were the first to see it and would be willing to testify or at least write a statement on your behalf, that would help you a lot if you choose to go forward with a lawsuit. I would also recommend that you file a DMCA takedown notice with a lawyer. If you can convince a lawyer that Disney stole it, then MAYBE you could convince that lawyer to work on a pro-bono basis. Which means they don't get paid until you do. If they really believe you have a good case they will work with you.
Deanna Soliman 8 years ago
SUE THE F*****S. If you let this continue on, its gonna happen again and keep happening after that. Disney is not innocent and honest as they appear. They're really the complete opposite.
Rachel Isnotahero 8 years ago
If you had posted it on instagram or this kind of thing, you had agreed in the terms that your picture could be used by the application owner.
Sarah Mark Cleverley 8 years ago
I know you painted the original but did you copyright it before putting it on the internet? If you didn't not sure how you would come off still it's an awhile thing to do disney
David Ross 8 years ago
That is what Disney does since Walt passed. No creativity any more, just stolen ideas. But, they have the lawyers.
Brandon Bailey 8 years ago
That is an uphill battle because Disney probably owns the Alice and Wonderland copyright. Could make things very tricky from a legal perspective
Dewey Gripshover 8 years ago
Do you have proof you have a copyright on the image? Most likely not as college student. If so report it to the US copyright office and they will fight it for you.
Laura Sherman 8 years ago
And the design of the bag clearly adds insult to injury. Come on Disney that screams stolen.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
Well yeah. Because that's almost exactly how Alice is described in the book itself...
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Pam 8 years ago
So...and Im just wondering how it works so please, don't jump all over me.....the imagery used is clearly Alice, who is copyrighted by Disney....so shouldn't they TECHNICALLY have rights?
Jane Considine 8 years ago
I would think that images from the film are copyrighted, not the book, which is probably old enough to be public domain.
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Rita McDonough Jenkins 8 years ago
Is there proof that the bag was made and sold by Disney? Or, is it a knock-off? Perhaps someone stole images from Disney, as well as from you. I couldn't find this bag in the Disney online store, nor could I find it for sale, anywhere online.
Rachael Leventhal 8 years ago
Disney can claim that the artist violated Disney's copyright by using the "Alice in Wonderland" character. If she can prove that the original art was not based on "Alice in Wonderland," and was just a random girl in a blue dress, there may be hope, but fighting Disney would be very difficult and expensive.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
They don't own the character. Alice in Wonderland has been in public domain for a long time. They didn't invent the character. What's been drawn here is an accurate representation of how Alice is described as looking in the book.
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Miriam Sanchez 8 years ago
Nah, in this case, you don't have a leg to stand on, sorry. You drew fanart of a copyrighted character...which Disney owns the right to. Technically, it's theirs and fanart is already shady when it comes to legality, especially if you were using it to make prints or such, because then you would have been profiting off their character. Yes, ideally, they should have contacted you and offered you some acknowledgement or a commission's fee. Realistically, it's a massive company and you were playing with one of their toys.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
The character in her drawing is made to look almost exactly as described in the book. Alice in wonderland has been in the public domain for a long time, Disney does not own it.
Load More Replies... Nyaaaaah 8 years ago
She won't win if she sues them. They'll say she made a fanart of their character in their version of Alice in Wonderland. Therefore, since it's an image of their character, this drawing is their property and they can use it however they want. They could even threaten her by saying she's lucking THEY don't sue HER.
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
Not really. The character that's been drawn is drawn almost just like described in the book.
Load More Replies... April Scott 8 years ago
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Sarah Britt 8 years ago
No they don't....Alice in wonderland has been public domain for a very long time. They didn't invent this character or story
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#2
Thomas Pullin's Original Work (Left) And Neda Rabiei's Nockoff (Right)
Caroline Huot 8 years ago
Crazy!! This should get upvotes... it's not freakin triangles!! It's a blatant copy of a very distinctive artwork. Your work is gorgeous btw!
#3
Woman Steals Artwork From Artist Ryan Conners, Paints Flowers On Top Of It And Sells Products With It As Her Own
#4
Zara Steals Tuesday Bassen's Artwork
Random Panda 8 years ago
This is outrageous! Zara should be so ashamed!!! They got enough money to hire an entire team of designer FFS, do they really need to steal???
#5
First Official Art Thief
Claire Elizia 8 years ago
To be honest that drawing is beyond beautiful I love it so much such a shame someone had to go and steal it!
#6
This "Artist"
#7
Lili Chin's Illustrations “Doggie Language” On Kohl's T-Shirts
#8
Company Stealing Artwork From Artist
#9
Ford Steals Firewatch Artwork For A Promotional Ad
Sophia Bennani 8 years ago
Working in advertising, I have to say that unfortunately, most of the time, the clients don't have any idea where the artwork comes from, it's the ad agency or the graphic designers who stole it or are too lazy to produce real work...
#10
Forever21 Gone Wild
#11
Etsy Shop Owner Using Belandkal Artwork Without Permission On Their Laser Etched Products. The Art Itself Is Pretty Ironic In This Case
#12
Art Thief Whose Been Stealing And Selling Prints On Deviantart Finally Gets Spotted Out On Facebook And Called Out
Lisa Panos Fullerton 8 years ago
Good for this artist! So awesome you were able to bust this thief's balls! Fr
#13
Mark Conlan's Original Work (Left) And Neda Rabiei's Nockoff (Right)
Amaranthim Talon 8 years ago
Notice this art thief is doing it constantly- not the first entry on this page!
#14
Stolen Art
Angela Hernandez 8 years ago
Unfortunately there is very little you can do when a company overseas steals your art.
#15
Art Thief Posting Work All Over The Internet As His Own Is Caught Red-Handed By The Artist And Called Out
Shauday Smith 8 years ago
That's Briana Garcia, she works for Disney. I've been following her work for years and she's fantastic. She started in Disneyland and has worked her way into their artist showcases and character drawing demonstrations. She is very talented. Her sketches and illustrations are 100% her property and do not belong to disney or the public unless she expressly says so. Regardless of the subject. If i draw Disney's cinderella, that is 100% MY work. Credit to Disney for their character but MY illustration. If i take YOUR illustration of disney's cinderella and claim it as my own then i am stealing YOUR work. If i take your illustration and try to sell it, i'm putting myself at legal risk for stealing both IP's because i did not make the drawing and do not have permission to sell it as my own goods and i do not have permission to profit from the selling of a copyrighted disney character.
#16
Fashion Label Brandy Melville Knocked Off The Artist Brain Foetus By Placing Her Embroidered Piece On Their Top
#17
Original And The Copy
Kirsa Rasmussen 8 years ago
"Zara" has some very lazy designers since they only steal other's art work
#18
Samantha Beeston Had Stolen Artist's Lauren Nassef's Drawings (Left) And Used Them In Her Own Pattern Designs (Right)
#19
Stolen Fan Art
#20
Originals Vs Rip-Offs
Robert Herczeg 8 years ago
Even though I can't imagine that too much work went into this one, not cool
#21
Rashidi Barrett's Version (Right) Of Matheus Lopez Castro Work (Left). Barrett Admitted What He'd Done And Apologised On His Website
#22
Frenchman Romain Sarkal Eloy Submits A Photoshopped Picture (Bottom) To A Contest And Wins A New Macbook Pro Laptop All Without A Permission Of Photographer Kevin Collins Who Took The Original Picture (Top)
#23
Taylor Swift Posted A Fan Art Which Later Turned Out To Be Art Thievery From Artist Ally Burguieres
#24
Urban Outfitters Steals Artist's Spires Work And Puts In On A Skirt
#25
Original Illustration And Knock-off Version
#26
Band Rapper Sadat X Released An Album With Artist's Jay Roeder Artwork On It Without His Permission
#27
Art Stolen From Deviantart User Nerkin
Sarah Britt 8 years ago
What does the shirt say??? I can't tell and it's driving me nuts trying to figure it out.
#28
Northern Ireland Painter Martin Bradley Produced Almost “Exact Replicas” (Right) Of Works By American Painter Tim Rogerson (Left)
#29
Modern Dog, A Small Seattle Design Shop, Accused Disney And Some Of Their Partners, Including Target, Of Ripping Off One Of Its Dog-Oriented Designs To Create A T-Shirt. They Even Started A Social Media Campaign To Attract More Attention To The Issue
#30
Creative Agency Is Not So Creative Apparently
#31
Forever 21 Accused Of Blatantly Stealing Valfre Designs
#32
Stolen Artwork
#33
Artist's Design Used On A T-Shirt
#34
Snapchat Accused Of Stealing Make-Up Artist's Work For Selfie Filters. They Later Admitted To This Being An Issue After 3 Other Artists Were Copied
#35
Original Work By J.Scott Campbell (Left) And Benjamin Spark's Work (Right)
#36
Someone Out There Is Selling Rip-Offs Of My Designs
#37
Print By Hidden Eloise On A Paperchase Bag Bearing A Similar Design
#38
Zara Stealing Again
#39
Original Beekeepers Album Artwork And Apt. 13 Copy
Jace 8 years ago
This would make an interesting court case. The recreation is not the original artwork, clearly, but the concept is exactly the same, from figures, to clothes, down to the masks (not the coloring) and the body poses. The derivative work is much nicer, but it's a stolen concept.
#40
Original Work By J. Scott Campbell (Left) And Benjamin Spark's Work (Right)
#41
Controversial Artist Richard Prince Exhibits And Sells Screenshots Of Other Photographers’ Instagram Photos Without Permission
#42
Company Stealing Art From Independent Artist
#43
Stolen Art
Chloe Fletcher 3 years ago
Looks like she's screaming and about to eat her hair at the same time
#44
Internet Shop Stealing All Artist's Elapuse Art To Make Money Of It
#46
Women Rise Stole My Design Of Princess Leia
#47
Chinese Version
#49
Stolen Fanart
earringnut 8 years ago
this one makes me want to cry. if art isn't rewarded no one will go through the trouble of being an artist. i fear for a world without art.
#51
Artwork Stolen By Asos
#52
The Original Of Polish Artist Adrian Knopik (Top) And Rashidi Barrett's Version (Bottom)
Master Markus 8 years ago
I don't know if it's supposed to be erotic, but they, especially the third one kind of gross me out.
#53
Company Copying Artist's Design
#54
This Artist Is Getting Angry
#55
Indie Devs Claim Early Drawings From RWBY To Be Concept Art For Their Game
#56
Almost Copy-Paste
Tiia Lehtola 8 years ago
looks like some kid is just learning to draw and don't know better to link back or contact the original artist.
#57
Paintings Plagiarised By Wendy Marani (Right) As Painted By Nancy Farmer (Left)
Caroline Huot 8 years ago
Don't worry, the copies are atrocious!! Looks like they were done by an elementary school kid!
#58
Selling Stolen Art
Sarah Hudock 8 years ago
Go here to report copyright infringements on Facebook. They are pretty quick to take them down, I use it all the time for people stealing my artwork. https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/634636770043106?helpref=faq_content
#59
When Flattery Becomes Forgery
James Blair 8 years ago
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery but copying without attribution to the original artist is insincere flatuence.
#60
Stolen Design Copy
#61
Art Thief
#62
Claire's Ripped Off This Clare Louise Owen Design
#63
Artist Shepard Fairey Used A Picture Of B.Obama For His Poster Without A Permission Of Photographer Mannie Garcia Who Took The Picture
Imma Letchofinish 8 years ago
Shepard's career highlights include taking a photo, add in photoshop filter and then make millions. Photographer sees nothing from it.
#64
Stolen Art
Adriana E. Henricy 8 years ago
pissed, bc they are making money out of another persons design, redbubble is full of it
#65
Internet Shop Using Artist's Fanart To Make Keychains
#66
Stolen Artwork
Tiffany Zhu 8 years ago
dang good think I got here before the Jolo Atlantis guy could criticize the grammar again. Yeesh. Btw that bear mask looks so cool. :D
#67
Samantha's R. Original Artwork On Lil Kim's Single Cover
#68
Jakarta’s Jazz Festival Advertising Materials Look Extremely Similar To Ian Austin’s Original Artwork
#70
Stolen Art Being Sold Online
#71
Stolen Art
Sarah Hudock 8 years ago
Teechip is hosted by Amazon Web Services. Send a DMCA letter to copyright@amazon.com - they take For.Ev.Er to respond, but they eventually take it down. The more people serve letters against Teechip, the better. I've filed many now myself.
#72
Chas Truslow "Killa Bart" Art On Ruvilla T-Shirts That It Marketed And Sold To Its Customers
#73
Art Thief
#74
Stolen Art And Even Costs Nothing
#75
This Guy Totally Ripped Off My Favorite Artist Kshocs. Even The Coloring Is The Same
Agathe May 8 years ago
Well, it s complicated for tatoo. of course the Kshocks s one is gorgeous. But i can imagine that someone can t travel to get this tatoo and ask an other tatoo artist to make it... very common actually. A lot of tatoos are just copy of some design because the customers want it. What we need is a good tatoo artist who can do everything we ask. but asking them to copy some work can just have a very bas result on you at the end, it s a risk sinc everybody as skills in some styles or not... but i dont see the problem. If my tatoo artist dont see any problem to do a copyright caracter or drawing if i ask it... why should we be upset for that one. Should we jail all the tatoo artist who did a mickey on their customers. Wake up people. The customers ask and you just fulfill his wish. It would be some art work from internet, nobody would have say s**t.
#76
Art Thief Seeking Attention
#78
Stolen Design
Kaleigh Bryant 8 years ago
So you're mad that someone liked your artwork so much they got it tattooed? I guess nobody can get any tattoos unless they draw it completely themselves,right?
#79
Apparently My Artwork Is Being Stolen
#80
Troll Thieves
Aahzmandus Pervect 8 years ago
And you know for a fact that Boylands isn't getting any restitution from Primark?
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Its me 8 years ago
Just fund a funny detail... Post #58 from this thread shows a design from instagram @crimewa.ve. I found the instagram account @crimewave and found a "nike knife" which is also shown at the bored panda thread "Artist Turns Logos Of Famous Brands Into Weapons, And The Result Is Dangerously Awesome" Snap2-59ca...d86837.jpg 
Anna Hämäläinen 8 years ago
This makes me so sad. Specially when the copycats are big companies stealing artwork of new and young artists knowing that the original artists can't do a thing to protect their work. Obviously designers get inspired by the things that they see and might eventually end up creating something similar, but just copying what they see is so low. I have this top which has been fairly popular ever since I made the first prototype in 2013. Over the last year so I've seen it being copied plenty times. The one on the left is my original design. One on the right is IHeartRaves's version titled as "Exclusively designed by the IHeartRaves team". dreamwarri...b1171a.jpg 
Alusair Alustriel 8 years ago
What I want to see are the reactions of the thieves and how those stories unfolded, be it catching red-handed, lawsuits and other actions. I hope the thieves get what they deserve, starting from social exclusion, through embarrasement and undermined "talent" to heavy financial punishment. How can you be so insolent and steal like that?! Have you no shame?
logical fallacy 8 years ago
It's very hard to actually punish them. Those Zara and Berska things are sold all around (saw them at the store only a few months back), and people were buying them like crazy because they're cute indeed. Did these people know the designs were stolen? Probably not. And even if they were, convenience would have probably won anyway. Lawyers cost a lot of money, and usually artists are short on that. The only ones who can easily be taken care of are those small businesses selling stuff online, by spreading the word. But the rest? It's going to be very hard.
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Melissa Nucera 8 years ago
Not sure where the original copying took place, but HomeSense is selling ornaments with an obvious copy of my artwork printed on them. HomeSenseC...d4c3b0.jpg 
Jace 8 years ago
Looks like they didn't steal the original photo, just copied it as an illustration. Depending on whether or not your fox in a suit photo creation is used as a business identity, it would probably be hard to get them stopped, especially if you cannot afford lawyers (if it's a representation of your business, then you can sue for brand confusion). Do you have your own works on a website? Promote the hell out of them everywhere you see this copy. Send take-down notices every time you find your stuff copied and see what happens.
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nuronuro 8 years ago
So ironically, it was here on Bored Panda, where my art was stolen. I posted my necklaces in the comments of an article about galaxy necklaces. Apparently someone saw it here and made a copy of my design. 20729278_1...1551bc.jpg 
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
I saw your necklace, it was cuter then the original posters necklace they showed- easier to wear too!
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nuronuro 8 years ago
So, ironically, it was here!!! On Bored Panda, where my art was stolen. I posted my necklace design in one of the comments on Bored Panda featuring galaxy necklaces, and apparently some company or factory saw it and made a copy of it. 20729278_1...7cb079.jpg 
Caroline Whelan 8 years ago
This frustrates me so much. People have no respect for the amount of skill and time it takes to produce an artwork. With bigger companies, if they like the artwork enough, I'm sure they can shell out enough to pay artists for their time, but they just don't want to bother. Bigger companies know they can get away with ripping off smaller artists, and it is so maddening. I myself recently had my work ripped off. I do searches of my images from time to time with Google Images to see if anyone is illegally using my work, and I came across someone using my illustration for a brooch. fox-brooch...040f71.jpg 
Jace 8 years ago
Was your illustration posted online somewhere that Google Image Search can find it? Most likely, this is how most of these rip offs are being made. Instead of hiring an artist, they're appropriating stuff they find with search engines and not caring about the source. The only solution to this particular problem is to never post your stuff on line. Get into galleries or sell your own product with clear watermarks on the photographs of your merchandise, but don't post your stuff online in any usable size. This is frustrating indeed, because how do we artists share our works with others without them being harvested?
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Simon Clarke 8 years ago
I had a tattoo artist copy one of my self portraits and now my face is tattooed on at least 5 people (that I know of) around the world tattoo-pic...dcc192.jpg 
Linda Gulley 8 years ago
I can't even begin to understand why a stranger would want that.
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Sierra Hall 8 years ago
This really makes me sad/mad. These artist spend so much time and put some much of themselves into their projects and these thieves come and take them away. It's horrible. Lawyers probably cost more than a lot of these people can afford, and when it's overseas... good luck trying to get them to stop. I hope they get their justice.
Sylvia Ritter 8 years ago
It makes me furious to see that so many artists got ripped off. I had to add watermarks to my paintings. For the last few months I filled in over 2500 DMCA's and I still need to fill in 5-20 each day. While I make next to nothing and struggle to survive, my art is illegally sold on phone cases, bags, yoga mats, t-shirts etc. with cheap inferior quality all over the world (e.g. USA, China, Europe, India, Indonesia) via Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Alibaba, Aliexpress, Taobao etc. They don't have a license and I never gave my consent. The text on my artworks are important to prevent art theft. Sadly, not all of these thieves respect watermarks. So here is what happened (Btw, if you see your art on these hoodies the main source is Alibaba.com, Taobao.com, 1688.com and Aliexpress.com. I highly recommend joining their IPR system to prevent more art thefts. From there people buy cheap products and they sell them on Amazon, Ebay, Shopify and other online stores): ArtInfring...56d0fd.jpg 
Jace 8 years ago
How are they getting your images? Are you presenting them in large format online? If yes, then Google Image Search (and others) is letting people harvest your work. Are your own online sales pages using large images? Reduce them and add strong watermarks.
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Aunt Messy 8 years ago
How much does it cost to copyright an image? A couple of hundred bucks? So here's a tip from a fellow artist. NEVER, EVER, EVER post ANY of your work online until AFTER you have a copyright number. ... Then, when you post it, append the copyright number at the bottom of the image. That way, copying your work is clearly illegal. .... Never be naive enough to think that it can't happen, and don't kid yourself that no one will steal your work. Remember if you post it online ANYONE CAN GET IT.
Tristain Micko 8 years ago
You're confusing copyright with trademark. Copyrights are free, trademarks are not. While an artist cannot assume complete security from theft when they post their work on the internet, there is and should be an expectation of compensation, just as there is with any other type of theft. Copying work without permission is stealing, period. It's the same thing as plagiarism.
Load More Replies... Kevin Camp 8 years ago
The most frustrating part about being an artist is to be seen you must display your work and so scumbags are easger to steal it. Even more frustrating are the complete a******s that make millions off other's work and are celebrated for doing it. People like Richard Prince and others are celebrated for blatantly stealing other's work and selling it for large profits and are protected by the art community.
Jace 8 years ago
Don't post large versions of your creations online. Most rip-offs are probable made by sellers using an image search engine to find "free" artwork to put on their merchandise. The only way to be safe is to not post your work online in a usable format. Try to get your work in real galleries, not posted online. If you must post online, use a small image with a huge watermark that's hard to remove.
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Noëlle Burke 8 years ago
I am SO sick of copycats! This big company called Adairs in Australia copied my Cat Nap Pillowcases design- they just altered it with some text, a nose and thickened the lines! My company is called Xenotees, and I came up with and started producing my original design in 2014. copycat_ad...e36ec0.jpg 
Sarah Maslowski 8 years ago
I think you can post online (not use for selling product without permission of course) copies or reproductions of drawings you like as an art exercise. You can often see that on deviantart but.... just give credits to original artists !!! Come on be fair- play :/ !!!
Dorka 8 years ago
Tell me this! I love the wonderful pictures that the Windows update is showing every single time I start my computer. BUT! From the first time I am thinking, "who made this picture, can I download, an I like the picture or anyhow appreciate the photographer behind it?" Anybody has any idea f thy have a database with all those beautiful pics and their origin?
Jace 8 years ago
Microsoft is likely purchasing the rights to those photos. You'd have to try using Google Reverse Image Search to find info about them (maybe the original or a stock photography site will show up in search),, or contact Microsoft's marketing or legal departments to ask for a list of the original artists (they will probably ignore you since they only want to spend time on things that they are legally compelled to spend time on).
Load More Replies... Sylvia Ritter 8 years ago
It makes me furious to see how many artists got ripped off. I had to add watermarks to my paintings. For the last few months I filled in over 2500 DMCA's and I still need to fill in 5-20 each day. While I make next to nothing and struggle to survive, my art is illegally sold on phone cases, bags, yoga mats, t-shirts, DIY kits etc. with cheap inferior quality all over the world (e.g. USA, China, Europe, India, Indonesia) via Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Alibaba, Aliexpress, Taobao etc. They don't have a license and I never gave my consent. The text on my artworks are important to prevent art theft.
Sadly not all thieves respect watermarks. So here is what happened (Btw, if you see your art on these hoodies the infringement source is on the pages I mentioned previously Alibaba.com, Aliexpress.com, Taobao.com, 1688.com. I strongly recommend to join their IPR system to prevent art theft all over the internet. Otherwise people will start selling them on Ebay, Etsy, Amazon etc.): ArtInfring...40a38b.jpg 
Linda Gulley 8 years ago
I find this hilarious on Bored Panda, where we're subjected to never-ending posts from those "inspired by" (aka blatantly stealing) others' art every damn day.
Jace 8 years ago
Examples? Are you talking about "fan art"? If someone isn't SELLING fan art, then making and presenting fan art is not illegal. It's fair use. If they ARE selling someone else's IP, then yes, that's not legal and they might get threatened by the owners of the IP.
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Sharon Jay 8 years ago
Brian Rubenacker should be at the top of this list. Every pillow/mug/iPhone case dealer in China has ripped him off and eBay and aliexpress were complicit. He's probably spent a fortune trying to preserve his work.
Helene Jay 8 years ago
The companies know exactly who they are buying from. Its not only photos and art but song lyrics, cover art, television shows screen plays and inventions. I have been financially raped by these types of people and it needs to stop. I have to find a good lawyer to aid me in my quest. There are laws that protect artist and inventors but those of us with limited financial resources are very limited in what we can do. .I saw one of my drawings redone hanging in a Hilton hotel. This kind of theft has to be put an end to and the fakes need to be exposed and made to pay what they owe.
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
It's like what Rappers do by camp lung others artists work in their songs and then passing it off as their own w/o given credit or compensation to the artist(s) they sampled from.
Load More Replies... PurpleUnicorn 8 years ago
This is what happens if you don't copyright your work before you make it available online.
Full Name 8 years ago
Imagine you are a big company that deals with a ton of artwork, like Ford, type deal. An artist claims a work as original and sells it to you. Is it up to you to dig into the history of the artwork to make sure they didn't steal it from someone else? I don't feel like it is, beyond perhaps a quick google reverse image search, but even that shouldn't be the buyers responsibility. It's messed up when you become responsible for someone else's claims. Then again, if you purchase something that turns out to have been stolen, the police take it from you. I dunno, it's a tough one because I see it from both sides (and I've had video I took stolen and used for profit from a company with international reach so believe me I understand how it feels).
Rah Soft 8 years ago
lawyers call it due diligence, such artists are usually required sign a legal document stating that the work they are selling is original and theirs alone.
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Gary 6 years ago
I’m surprised Lisa Congdon isn’t in here. She’s probably the most famous artist of our time who’s made a career for herself off copying other artists work, or using it as a jumping off point. She’s been called out publicly but it was 10 years ago. She’s back at it again. She’s a story all by herself.
Patrick Damiaens 6 years ago
Just start a lawsuit. I did some time ago, and I won and this against Zara Home Belgium, Also know as Spanish giant Inditex (Zara, Bershka, Pull Bear, etc....) It took some time, but if you are sure that there is an infringement, go for it.
T.J. Guinard 7 years ago
The amazing irony and hypocrisy of this article being a 100% direct copy of from another website is next level!! The original article was posted 9 months ago. Every comment on here is from 8 months ago!
Amelia Carlson 7 years ago
This is my mountain design that gets ripped off every month or so. This infringer claimed that she has a right to compete on Etsy with me, and she has to stay fresh, so she refuses to take this down. basketfulr...4f1190.jpg 
Julie Jackson 7 years ago
How arrogant is Zara's response. Disgraceful to say the least. Lost a customer here. Same with Disney. Disney are soooooooooo precious about their brand and what they own, you can hardly fart without their consent and yet they've STOLEN stuff from another. What? Big companies, you can't pay for something you'd like or design your own and pay an artist? Disney expects everyone to pay if you use something of theirs like a song. HYOPCRITES!!!!!!
Florian Payer 8 years ago
my concept at university 2016, found it in an actual campaign Bildschirm...5d-png.jpg 
James Wilson 8 years ago
Working as a Graphic Designer in the fashion industry I learned that shamelessly copying designs is the industry standard. I worked for the largest clothing retailers in South Africa and they all do it. They actually send "buyers" overseas to go on clothing shopping sprees. Then the buyers destroy the clothing by cutting them up to make them unwearable (this creates a loophole to get past import customs), then it's the job of a junior graphic designer to make carbon copies of the designs. I'm not talking about using it for trend prediction or inspiration, I mean literally carbon copies, sometimes down to the smallest details.
James Wilson 8 years ago
I remember once ripping off an entire Nike active-wear range. We took images from their catalogue, photoshopped their logo out and replaced it with a generic made-up brand, and voila that was our spring/summer active wear range to be sold in stores across the country.
Load More Replies... James Wilson 8 years ago
I've worked as a Graphic Designer for the top retailers and clothing brands here in South Africa and the standard practice is to send "buyers" overseas. They basically go on a clothes shopping spree, then "destroy" the items by cutting them up and making them unwearable (this gives them a loophole to get past import customs), then they bring it to a designer like myself who's job it was to copy the designs. They aren't just using these items for trend prediction or for inspiration, they are literally making carbon copies. I must reiterate that these aren;t fringe-cases... this is the de facto industry standard.
Jesús Campos 8 years ago
Hi! I'm the author of art #27. Thanks for your support. The art in my deviantART gallery: https://nerkin.deviantart.com/art/By-the-Mania-for-the-Mania-697594131 Thanks!
Katinka Min 8 years ago
That large brands are stealing from artists makes me mad as fire. They have the money. They just choose not to spend it because they know, they get away with it since few artists have thousands of dollars for lawyers.
Trouble Baker 8 years ago
I was just told this week that one of my cookie photos (and photos by others) are on leggings being sold at Walmart right now. walmart-59...4acf9a.jpg 
Lisa Greene 8 years ago
Whenever art is stolen or used without credit/permission, it hurts the whole art community...I know it's hard for consumers to know when this is happening ie/ Forever 21, Etsy, Target, and other large companies, present their wares as legal. Most people expect that the T-shirt, keychain, mug etc... belongs to them and isn't stolen. But as you can see from these posts, art is brazenly stolen all the time! Typically from small artists that don't have a pot to p**s in and have no legal recourse. They can't afford a good lawyer, so most of the time the best the artist can do is point out that their work has been stolen. As consumers, we have the ability to stop buying things that have stolen art work on them. So if you see that an artist is saying their work hasn't been credited, or they didn't get permission to use it, then boycott it! As the mother of an artist I've seen personally what this does to an artist. It's not only sad but it is stealing money from a group of hard working people
Jeanne Richard 8 years ago
-_- Half wish I hadn't looked through this one. It made me curious of my own work and I found one used in nearly a dozen free clipart sites and another on tattoo idea databanks. Three even on one website advertising "their" video game concept art services in India.
Thomas Riley 8 years ago
i have s**t from the myspace era that people are stealing and using in popular fb group pages, and then when you bring up proof, they yell at me like im the problem lol
Agnes Jekyll 8 years ago
This makes me so angry. Artists have a hard enough time making a living, and for them to be ripped off my major corporations is immoral and a flagrant abuse of power. Yeah, I know--this is often a case of a lazy design company ripping off someone else's ideas, but you know what--you want something, pay for it (i.e. design company).
Mark Morey 8 years ago
There are also people who steal art that isn't decorative mediocrity. For example: "Rat Fink" artists and designers Johnny Ace and Kali Verra have shared numerous examples of people lifting their copyrighted drawings and paintings for unauthorized merchandise.
Gwendalyn Augustine 8 years ago
Thank you Bored Panda & Šarūnė Mac for exposing these ruthless thieves &/or con artists!!! They deserve to be outed at the very least.
Bruce Kunde 8 years ago
When I lived in San Jose, CA At the local flea market ICE agents were always busting some Vietnamese for making T shirts with nike, NFL, etc logos. But they won't go after big corporations?
Rah Soft 8 years ago
I had one of my photos stolen by Karen millian clothing, twice ! at least they had to compensate me, but I think they got it from a German agency because the multinational firm ARUP stole the same photo for one of their prospectus on lighting that they handed out to clients.
Rah Soft 8 years ago
i had karen millen steal one of my photos for their website and to make matters worse they did it twice. at least they had to pay compensation. Its looked like it was taken by an agency in Germany because the multinational group ARUP stole the same photo for one of their prospectus handed out to customer and available on line
ArthurZak 8 years ago
I do not know if this is coincidence but; while we are talking about theft my friend told me once that one of my concepts had stolen.. F1-59caba1188e37.jpg 
natomnesejde 8 years ago
Well, totally not cool... But not so surprising considering that lot of these companies in a way are accused of exploiting adult and child (!!!) workers in various countries...
Laura Sherman 8 years ago
I feel for these artists. Something to think about, Although it may hurt the integrity of the piece but water marks are always a good way to deter people from stealing. Stock photo sites capitalize on this and they know the importance of giving there artist a safe place to post their work. I know that these companies have no right, but better safe then sorry.
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
That's why I put a watermark on every piece of my artwork I post on the internet. I'm not taking any chances.
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Meredith Wish 8 years ago
I'm an art director for this brand, and found this, down to the copy was copied.... also, look at the dates. Screen-Sho...ba178c.png 
Jace 8 years ago
Sorry, Meredith. This isn't theft. There are so few similar elements here. At best, someone (Mattel?) used your company's advert to inspire their own original creation. That is perfectly legal and ethical.
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Eyeball 8 years ago
One reason why I stopped making art... others will steal off me and make a profit while I remain poor yet creative. Ugh.
Jonathan Eatsalot 8 years ago
Perhaps people shouldn't be posting their original artwork on the internet if they plan on monetizing it at some point?
Jace 8 years ago
The comments throughout this article's postings... Most people seem to get that art theft is bad, but it's still sad how many people don't get it. So few people understand intellectual property law and ethics. Especially bizarre that people seem to excuse it when it's a tattoo. Tattoos are not a free-for-all to steal artwork. No, an unapproved tattoo copy of someone's artwork is not flattery. It's theft. Flattery does not pay the bills. When the tattoo artist gets paid (knowingly or not) for copying someone else's art, that's an exchange of money for stolen art, and the artist is not getting that money (getting no compensation for their intellectual property being used/sold).
Claudia Garcia 8 years ago
ikr? My fanart had been all over ebay and aliexpress for years :( My DA: https://soraname.deviantart.com/art/Hana-Midorikawa-Kangoku-Gakuen-Prison-School-524517240 Aliexpress: https://pt.aliexpress.com/item/Anime-Prison-School-Cosplay-Costumes-Hana-sketch-Print-T-Shirts-Mari-Kurihara-Funny-T-shirt-Short/32778443423.html?spm=a2g03.search0302.3.159.Tz2mJb&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_0_10051_10050_10053_10173_10052_10338_10339_10055_10099_10054_10056_10059_10532_10137_10060_100031_10107_10307_10341_10065_10142_10340_10068_10343_10342_10103_10102_10344_10073_10152_10151_10110_10154_10079_10112_10078_10111_10155_10114_10312_10113_10314_10313_10080_10082_10081_10084_10083_143_10326,searchweb201603_0,ppcSwitch_0&algo_pvid=ffae9025-39c9-4201-b3c5-676673d6014d&algo_expid=ffae9025-39c9-4201-b3c5-676673d6014d-21
Its me 8 years ago
Just fund a funny detail... Post #58 from this thread shows a design from instagram @crimewa.ve. I found the instagram account @crimewave and found a "nike knife" which is also shown at the bored panda thread "Artist Turns Logos Of Famous Brands Into Weapons, And The Result Is Dangerously Awesome" Snap2-59ca...d86837.jpg
Anna Hämäläinen 8 years ago
This makes me so sad. Specially when the copycats are big companies stealing artwork of new and young artists knowing that the original artists can't do a thing to protect their work. Obviously designers get inspired by the things that they see and might eventually end up creating something similar, but just copying what they see is so low. I have this top which has been fairly popular ever since I made the first prototype in 2013. Over the last year so I've seen it being copied plenty times. The one on the left is my original design. One on the right is IHeartRaves's version titled as "Exclusively designed by the IHeartRaves team". dreamwarri...b1171a.jpg
Alusair Alustriel 8 years ago
What I want to see are the reactions of the thieves and how those stories unfolded, be it catching red-handed, lawsuits and other actions. I hope the thieves get what they deserve, starting from social exclusion, through embarrasement and undermined "talent" to heavy financial punishment. How can you be so insolent and steal like that?! Have you no shame?
logical fallacy 8 years ago
It's very hard to actually punish them. Those Zara and Berska things are sold all around (saw them at the store only a few months back), and people were buying them like crazy because they're cute indeed. Did these people know the designs were stolen? Probably not. And even if they were, convenience would have probably won anyway. Lawyers cost a lot of money, and usually artists are short on that. The only ones who can easily be taken care of are those small businesses selling stuff online, by spreading the word. But the rest? It's going to be very hard.
Load More Replies... Melissa Nucera 8 years ago
Not sure where the original copying took place, but HomeSense is selling ornaments with an obvious copy of my artwork printed on them. HomeSenseC...d4c3b0.jpg
Jace 8 years ago
Looks like they didn't steal the original photo, just copied it as an illustration. Depending on whether or not your fox in a suit photo creation is used as a business identity, it would probably be hard to get them stopped, especially if you cannot afford lawyers (if it's a representation of your business, then you can sue for brand confusion). Do you have your own works on a website? Promote the hell out of them everywhere you see this copy. Send take-down notices every time you find your stuff copied and see what happens.
Load More Replies... nuronuro 8 years ago
So ironically, it was here on Bored Panda, where my art was stolen. I posted my necklaces in the comments of an article about galaxy necklaces. Apparently someone saw it here and made a copy of my design. 20729278_1...1551bc.jpg
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
I saw your necklace, it was cuter then the original posters necklace they showed- easier to wear too!
Load More Replies... nuronuro 8 years ago
So, ironically, it was here!!! On Bored Panda, where my art was stolen. I posted my necklace design in one of the comments on Bored Panda featuring galaxy necklaces, and apparently some company or factory saw it and made a copy of it. 20729278_1...7cb079.jpg
Caroline Whelan 8 years ago
This frustrates me so much. People have no respect for the amount of skill and time it takes to produce an artwork. With bigger companies, if they like the artwork enough, I'm sure they can shell out enough to pay artists for their time, but they just don't want to bother. Bigger companies know they can get away with ripping off smaller artists, and it is so maddening. I myself recently had my work ripped off. I do searches of my images from time to time with Google Images to see if anyone is illegally using my work, and I came across someone using my illustration for a brooch. fox-brooch...040f71.jpg
Jace 8 years ago
Was your illustration posted online somewhere that Google Image Search can find it? Most likely, this is how most of these rip offs are being made. Instead of hiring an artist, they're appropriating stuff they find with search engines and not caring about the source. The only solution to this particular problem is to never post your stuff on line. Get into galleries or sell your own product with clear watermarks on the photographs of your merchandise, but don't post your stuff online in any usable size. This is frustrating indeed, because how do we artists share our works with others without them being harvested?
Load More Replies... Simon Clarke 8 years ago
I had a tattoo artist copy one of my self portraits and now my face is tattooed on at least 5 people (that I know of) around the world tattoo-pic...dcc192.jpg
Linda Gulley 8 years ago
I can't even begin to understand why a stranger would want that.
Load More Replies... Sierra Hall 8 years ago
This really makes me sad/mad. These artist spend so much time and put some much of themselves into their projects and these thieves come and take them away. It's horrible. Lawyers probably cost more than a lot of these people can afford, and when it's overseas... good luck trying to get them to stop. I hope they get their justice.
Sylvia Ritter 8 years ago
It makes me furious to see that so many artists got ripped off. I had to add watermarks to my paintings. For the last few months I filled in over 2500 DMCA's and I still need to fill in 5-20 each day. While I make next to nothing and struggle to survive, my art is illegally sold on phone cases, bags, yoga mats, t-shirts etc. with cheap inferior quality all over the world (e.g. USA, China, Europe, India, Indonesia) via Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Alibaba, Aliexpress, Taobao etc. They don't have a license and I never gave my consent. The text on my artworks are important to prevent art theft. Sadly, not all of these thieves respect watermarks. So here is what happened (Btw, if you see your art on these hoodies the main source is Alibaba.com, Taobao.com, 1688.com and Aliexpress.com. I highly recommend joining their IPR system to prevent more art thefts. From there people buy cheap products and they sell them on Amazon, Ebay, Shopify and other online stores): ArtInfring...56d0fd.jpg
Jace 8 years ago
How are they getting your images? Are you presenting them in large format online? If yes, then Google Image Search (and others) is letting people harvest your work. Are your own online sales pages using large images? Reduce them and add strong watermarks.
Load More Replies... Aunt Messy 8 years ago
How much does it cost to copyright an image? A couple of hundred bucks? So here's a tip from a fellow artist. NEVER, EVER, EVER post ANY of your work online until AFTER you have a copyright number. ... Then, when you post it, append the copyright number at the bottom of the image. That way, copying your work is clearly illegal. .... Never be naive enough to think that it can't happen, and don't kid yourself that no one will steal your work. Remember if you post it online ANYONE CAN GET IT.
Tristain Micko 8 years ago
You're confusing copyright with trademark. Copyrights are free, trademarks are not. While an artist cannot assume complete security from theft when they post their work on the internet, there is and should be an expectation of compensation, just as there is with any other type of theft. Copying work without permission is stealing, period. It's the same thing as plagiarism.
Load More Replies... Kevin Camp 8 years ago
The most frustrating part about being an artist is to be seen you must display your work and so scumbags are easger to steal it. Even more frustrating are the complete a******s that make millions off other's work and are celebrated for doing it. People like Richard Prince and others are celebrated for blatantly stealing other's work and selling it for large profits and are protected by the art community.
Jace 8 years ago
Don't post large versions of your creations online. Most rip-offs are probable made by sellers using an image search engine to find "free" artwork to put on their merchandise. The only way to be safe is to not post your work online in a usable format. Try to get your work in real galleries, not posted online. If you must post online, use a small image with a huge watermark that's hard to remove.
Load More Replies... Noëlle Burke 8 years ago
I am SO sick of copycats! This big company called Adairs in Australia copied my Cat Nap Pillowcases design- they just altered it with some text, a nose and thickened the lines! My company is called Xenotees, and I came up with and started producing my original design in 2014. copycat_ad...e36ec0.jpg
Sarah Maslowski 8 years ago
I think you can post online (not use for selling product without permission of course) copies or reproductions of drawings you like as an art exercise. You can often see that on deviantart but.... just give credits to original artists !!! Come on be fair- play :/ !!!
Dorka 8 years ago
Tell me this! I love the wonderful pictures that the Windows update is showing every single time I start my computer. BUT! From the first time I am thinking, "who made this picture, can I download, an I like the picture or anyhow appreciate the photographer behind it?" Anybody has any idea f thy have a database with all those beautiful pics and their origin?
Jace 8 years ago
Microsoft is likely purchasing the rights to those photos. You'd have to try using Google Reverse Image Search to find info about them (maybe the original or a stock photography site will show up in search),, or contact Microsoft's marketing or legal departments to ask for a list of the original artists (they will probably ignore you since they only want to spend time on things that they are legally compelled to spend time on).
Load More Replies... Sylvia Ritter 8 years ago
It makes me furious to see how many artists got ripped off. I had to add watermarks to my paintings. For the last few months I filled in over 2500 DMCA's and I still need to fill in 5-20 each day. While I make next to nothing and struggle to survive, my art is illegally sold on phone cases, bags, yoga mats, t-shirts, DIY kits etc. with cheap inferior quality all over the world (e.g. USA, China, Europe, India, Indonesia) via Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Alibaba, Aliexpress, Taobao etc. They don't have a license and I never gave my consent. The text on my artworks are important to prevent art theft.
Sadly not all thieves respect watermarks. So here is what happened (Btw, if you see your art on these hoodies the infringement source is on the pages I mentioned previously Alibaba.com, Aliexpress.com, Taobao.com, 1688.com. I strongly recommend to join their IPR system to prevent art theft all over the internet. Otherwise people will start selling them on Ebay, Etsy, Amazon etc.): ArtInfring...40a38b.jpg
Linda Gulley 8 years ago
I find this hilarious on Bored Panda, where we're subjected to never-ending posts from those "inspired by" (aka blatantly stealing) others' art every damn day.
Jace 8 years ago
Examples? Are you talking about "fan art"? If someone isn't SELLING fan art, then making and presenting fan art is not illegal. It's fair use. If they ARE selling someone else's IP, then yes, that's not legal and they might get threatened by the owners of the IP.
Load More Replies... Sharon Jay 8 years ago
Brian Rubenacker should be at the top of this list. Every pillow/mug/iPhone case dealer in China has ripped him off and eBay and aliexpress were complicit. He's probably spent a fortune trying to preserve his work.
Helene Jay 8 years ago
The companies know exactly who they are buying from. Its not only photos and art but song lyrics, cover art, television shows screen plays and inventions. I have been financially raped by these types of people and it needs to stop. I have to find a good lawyer to aid me in my quest. There are laws that protect artist and inventors but those of us with limited financial resources are very limited in what we can do. .I saw one of my drawings redone hanging in a Hilton hotel. This kind of theft has to be put an end to and the fakes need to be exposed and made to pay what they owe.
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
It's like what Rappers do by camp lung others artists work in their songs and then passing it off as their own w/o given credit or compensation to the artist(s) they sampled from.
Load More Replies... PurpleUnicorn 8 years ago
This is what happens if you don't copyright your work before you make it available online.
Full Name 8 years ago
Imagine you are a big company that deals with a ton of artwork, like Ford, type deal. An artist claims a work as original and sells it to you. Is it up to you to dig into the history of the artwork to make sure they didn't steal it from someone else? I don't feel like it is, beyond perhaps a quick google reverse image search, but even that shouldn't be the buyers responsibility. It's messed up when you become responsible for someone else's claims. Then again, if you purchase something that turns out to have been stolen, the police take it from you. I dunno, it's a tough one because I see it from both sides (and I've had video I took stolen and used for profit from a company with international reach so believe me I understand how it feels).
Rah Soft 8 years ago
lawyers call it due diligence, such artists are usually required sign a legal document stating that the work they are selling is original and theirs alone.
Load More Replies... Gary 6 years ago
I’m surprised Lisa Congdon isn’t in here. She’s probably the most famous artist of our time who’s made a career for herself off copying other artists work, or using it as a jumping off point. She’s been called out publicly but it was 10 years ago. She’s back at it again. She’s a story all by herself.
Patrick Damiaens 6 years ago
Just start a lawsuit. I did some time ago, and I won and this against Zara Home Belgium, Also know as Spanish giant Inditex (Zara, Bershka, Pull Bear, etc....) It took some time, but if you are sure that there is an infringement, go for it.
T.J. Guinard 7 years ago
The amazing irony and hypocrisy of this article being a 100% direct copy of from another website is next level!! The original article was posted 9 months ago. Every comment on here is from 8 months ago!
Amelia Carlson 7 years ago
This is my mountain design that gets ripped off every month or so. This infringer claimed that she has a right to compete on Etsy with me, and she has to stay fresh, so she refuses to take this down. basketfulr...4f1190.jpg
Julie Jackson 7 years ago
How arrogant is Zara's response. Disgraceful to say the least. Lost a customer here. Same with Disney. Disney are soooooooooo precious about their brand and what they own, you can hardly fart without their consent and yet they've STOLEN stuff from another. What? Big companies, you can't pay for something you'd like or design your own and pay an artist? Disney expects everyone to pay if you use something of theirs like a song. HYOPCRITES!!!!!!
Florian Payer 8 years ago
my concept at university 2016, found it in an actual campaign Bildschirm...5d-png.jpg
James Wilson 8 years ago
Working as a Graphic Designer in the fashion industry I learned that shamelessly copying designs is the industry standard. I worked for the largest clothing retailers in South Africa and they all do it. They actually send "buyers" overseas to go on clothing shopping sprees. Then the buyers destroy the clothing by cutting them up to make them unwearable (this creates a loophole to get past import customs), then it's the job of a junior graphic designer to make carbon copies of the designs. I'm not talking about using it for trend prediction or inspiration, I mean literally carbon copies, sometimes down to the smallest details.
James Wilson 8 years ago
I remember once ripping off an entire Nike active-wear range. We took images from their catalogue, photoshopped their logo out and replaced it with a generic made-up brand, and voila that was our spring/summer active wear range to be sold in stores across the country.
Load More Replies... James Wilson 8 years ago
I've worked as a Graphic Designer for the top retailers and clothing brands here in South Africa and the standard practice is to send "buyers" overseas. They basically go on a clothes shopping spree, then "destroy" the items by cutting them up and making them unwearable (this gives them a loophole to get past import customs), then they bring it to a designer like myself who's job it was to copy the designs. They aren't just using these items for trend prediction or for inspiration, they are literally making carbon copies. I must reiterate that these aren;t fringe-cases... this is the de facto industry standard.
Jesús Campos 8 years ago
Hi! I'm the author of art #27. Thanks for your support. The art in my deviantART gallery: https://nerkin.deviantart.com/art/By-the-Mania-for-the-Mania-697594131 Thanks!
Katinka Min 8 years ago
That large brands are stealing from artists makes me mad as fire. They have the money. They just choose not to spend it because they know, they get away with it since few artists have thousands of dollars for lawyers.
Trouble Baker 8 years ago
I was just told this week that one of my cookie photos (and photos by others) are on leggings being sold at Walmart right now. walmart-59...4acf9a.jpg
Lisa Greene 8 years ago
Whenever art is stolen or used without credit/permission, it hurts the whole art community...I know it's hard for consumers to know when this is happening ie/ Forever 21, Etsy, Target, and other large companies, present their wares as legal. Most people expect that the T-shirt, keychain, mug etc... belongs to them and isn't stolen. But as you can see from these posts, art is brazenly stolen all the time! Typically from small artists that don't have a pot to p**s in and have no legal recourse. They can't afford a good lawyer, so most of the time the best the artist can do is point out that their work has been stolen. As consumers, we have the ability to stop buying things that have stolen art work on them. So if you see that an artist is saying their work hasn't been credited, or they didn't get permission to use it, then boycott it! As the mother of an artist I've seen personally what this does to an artist. It's not only sad but it is stealing money from a group of hard working people
Jeanne Richard 8 years ago
-_- Half wish I hadn't looked through this one. It made me curious of my own work and I found one used in nearly a dozen free clipart sites and another on tattoo idea databanks. Three even on one website advertising "their" video game concept art services in India.
Thomas Riley 8 years ago
i have s**t from the myspace era that people are stealing and using in popular fb group pages, and then when you bring up proof, they yell at me like im the problem lol
Agnes Jekyll 8 years ago
This makes me so angry. Artists have a hard enough time making a living, and for them to be ripped off my major corporations is immoral and a flagrant abuse of power. Yeah, I know--this is often a case of a lazy design company ripping off someone else's ideas, but you know what--you want something, pay for it (i.e. design company).
Mark Morey 8 years ago
There are also people who steal art that isn't decorative mediocrity. For example: "Rat Fink" artists and designers Johnny Ace and Kali Verra have shared numerous examples of people lifting their copyrighted drawings and paintings for unauthorized merchandise.
Gwendalyn Augustine 8 years ago
Thank you Bored Panda & Šarūnė Mac for exposing these ruthless thieves &/or con artists!!! They deserve to be outed at the very least.
Bruce Kunde 8 years ago
When I lived in San Jose, CA At the local flea market ICE agents were always busting some Vietnamese for making T shirts with nike, NFL, etc logos. But they won't go after big corporations?
Rah Soft 8 years ago
I had one of my photos stolen by Karen millian clothing, twice ! at least they had to compensate me, but I think they got it from a German agency because the multinational firm ARUP stole the same photo for one of their prospectus on lighting that they handed out to clients.
Rah Soft 8 years ago
i had karen millen steal one of my photos for their website and to make matters worse they did it twice. at least they had to pay compensation. Its looked like it was taken by an agency in Germany because the multinational group ARUP stole the same photo for one of their prospectus handed out to customer and available on line
ArthurZak 8 years ago
I do not know if this is coincidence but; while we are talking about theft my friend told me once that one of my concepts had stolen.. F1-59caba1188e37.jpg
natomnesejde 8 years ago
Well, totally not cool... But not so surprising considering that lot of these companies in a way are accused of exploiting adult and child (!!!) workers in various countries...
Laura Sherman 8 years ago
I feel for these artists. Something to think about, Although it may hurt the integrity of the piece but water marks are always a good way to deter people from stealing. Stock photo sites capitalize on this and they know the importance of giving there artist a safe place to post their work. I know that these companies have no right, but better safe then sorry.
Ann Ros'a 8 years ago
That's why I put a watermark on every piece of my artwork I post on the internet. I'm not taking any chances.
Load More Replies... Meredith Wish 8 years ago
I'm an art director for this brand, and found this, down to the copy was copied.... also, look at the dates. Screen-Sho...ba178c.png
Jace 8 years ago
Sorry, Meredith. This isn't theft. There are so few similar elements here. At best, someone (Mattel?) used your company's advert to inspire their own original creation. That is perfectly legal and ethical.
Load More Replies... Eyeball 8 years ago
One reason why I stopped making art... others will steal off me and make a profit while I remain poor yet creative. Ugh.
Jonathan Eatsalot 8 years ago
Perhaps people shouldn't be posting their original artwork on the internet if they plan on monetizing it at some point?
Jace 8 years ago
The comments throughout this article's postings... Most people seem to get that art theft is bad, but it's still sad how many people don't get it. So few people understand intellectual property law and ethics. Especially bizarre that people seem to excuse it when it's a tattoo. Tattoos are not a free-for-all to steal artwork. No, an unapproved tattoo copy of someone's artwork is not flattery. It's theft. Flattery does not pay the bills. When the tattoo artist gets paid (knowingly or not) for copying someone else's art, that's an exchange of money for stolen art, and the artist is not getting that money (getting no compensation for their intellectual property being used/sold).
Claudia Garcia 8 years ago
ikr? My fanart had been all over ebay and aliexpress for years :( My DA: https://soraname.deviantart.com/art/Hana-Midorikawa-Kangoku-Gakuen-Prison-School-524517240 Aliexpress: https://pt.aliexpress.com/item/Anime-Prison-School-Cosplay-Costumes-Hana-sketch-Print-T-Shirts-Mari-Kurihara-Funny-T-shirt-Short/32778443423.html?spm=a2g03.search0302.3.159.Tz2mJb&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_0_10051_10050_10053_10173_10052_10338_10339_10055_10099_10054_10056_10059_10532_10137_10060_100031_10107_10307_10341_10065_10142_10340_10068_10343_10342_10103_10102_10344_10073_10152_10151_10110_10154_10079_10112_10078_10111_10155_10114_10312_10113_10314_10313_10080_10082_10081_10084_10083_143_10326,searchweb201603_0,ppcSwitch_0&algo_pvid=ffae9025-39c9-4201-b3c5-676673d6014d&algo_expid=ffae9025-39c9-4201-b3c5-676673d6014d-21
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