DMCA Warning: the blogsdirectoryhub.com site may be stealing your content

I ran a Google search for this blog this morning and found the entry:

Ask The Blogster - Blogs Directory Hub

This is an illegal copy of my blog. All my posts since January 28, 2011 are there. The site reformatted all posts and all article links have been changed to point to their internal copy of my posts.

Typically with RSS feeds, the title links back to the original feed article. But, this is not the case. Thus, there is a copyright infringement.

Additionally, their Terms and Conditions section states that they only contain blogs and articles from those who have joined the site, become members, and gave permission to reprint the articles.

I have not joined this site and I have not given permission to reprint, use, or steal my content.

This site appears to be a duplicate copy of a site called thebloghub.com, except that their database of articles is not as extensive. That old site was removed from Google and later delisted entirely. At that time, I wrote an article:

Is thebloghub Stealing Your Content? Don't Fall for the Trap!

which describes the situation and what to do.

I now recommend that everyone check this site ( http://www.blogsdirectoryhub.com/ ) to see if you site's content has been stolen. If so, you should file a DMCA complaint as explained in my previous thebloghub article.

Lastly, I am writing this post with the intent that it will be copied in its entirety by blogsdirectoryhub.com as evidence that content is indeed being illegally copied and distributed.

PS: As quickly as I published this article,  it immediately appeared on blogsdirectoryhub.com.

Is thebloghub Stealing Your Content? Don't Fall for the Trap!

The growth and dependency of using RSS feeds to distribute your blog's content to other publishers has been an acceptable and often rewarding vehicle for expanding your reach. Among the most popular applications of RSS are for displaying "related content". Additionally, many start-ups have relied on the RSS feeds to provide a categorized index of related blogs to help in a user search. Generally, all is well with this approach.

But, when RSS falls in the wrong hands, copyrighted data could be illegally claimed and publishers may find themselves victims of identy theft.

This article exposes the dangers publishers face when utilization of RSS is available to sites like

thebloghub.com

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Are You a Victim?

Visit the site, thebloghub.com and enter your blog's title in the search box located in the upper right of the page. Then press "search"

If the returned results indicate "No Search found", then great. You're safe.

But if your blog is listed in the returned results, your site has been compromised.

Don't Panic, and read on.

DO NOT ENTER ANY INFORMATION ON THE SITE - Don't try to login with you email address or username, and Don't enter a password. (See below).

Click on your blog's entry and you will be surprised to see that all of your content is being presented as if it is theirs. The title will be yours, and all of your recent posts will be displayed. Google ads will be surrounding your pirated posts. If someone clicks on them, thebloghub will receive the AdSense revenue.

Worse, move your mouse over the title of each post. You'll notice that the links point to their own internal pages, again, not yours.

The only place you will see reference to your site is under a header link titled: Visit Author's Website.

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What's Going On?

In my opinion, thebloghub is preying you your emotional vulnerability. You see your content has been stolen and you want it back.

Further, many new bloggers enroll their sites with a variety of sites, hoping to gain instant exposure to readership, and for back-links. After a while, the blogger forgets: with whom he has registered, with what username; and with what password.

My three blogs are listed on their site. And, like most other victims, I did not join this site. I am not a member, and I did not give them permission to display my content and change my links. But, my information is there anyway.

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What They Want
I believe that thebloghub is trying to obtain our various usernames, email addresses, and passwords.

With this information and your IP address, they can determine where you live. This geographic data can be used to correlate which banks and credit cards you use. Further, they can access your email and other online accounts to gain access to you finances, etc.

In short, they are trying to Steal Your Identity!

The amount of revenue they will receive from Google ads is minimal by comparison to the value of your financial data.

They don't care about your content, only your private information.

Don't give it to them!

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What you Should and Should Not Do

As a victimized blogger, there are four things that you should do:

1. Change Your Passwords Immediately if you entered any information on their site.
2. Read the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
3. Complete and submit Google AdSense DMCA Complaint Form
4. Forget about it.

Additionally, you should NOT:

1. Try to contact them directly
2. Report your URL's to them using the "Report Content Page"
3. Give anyone your usernames, email addresses, or passwords.
4. If contacted by them, do not respond.

Providing any information to thebloghub will only indicate that "you are a live one", i.e. "someone who's fallen for the bait"

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Summary

In summary, RSS feeds can be a blogger's best friend. They can be used to help distribute your content and help you obtain a broader readership.

But in the hands of organized criminals, RSS feeds can be used as a decoy to obtain your most private personal data.

If you have discovered that thebloghub has stolen your content, don't fall into their trap. Instead, follow the advice we provided above and let the proper authorities investigate and resolve the problem

Stay safe,

JL............