Ok, so this is right up there with the weirdest thing we’ve ever seen in our past almost-three-years as bloggers. Recently a reader (thanks Sara!) wrote alerting us that she had seen photos of our living room and guest bedroom on a vacation rental site called Airbnb. And apparently the “landlord” was claiming that they were photos of their house in Pasadena- and charging $48 a night with priority to anyone who booked it for one or two weeks straight (to the tune of $336 to $672) since they “received so much interest.”
Isn’t that weird???? What happens when people get there and it doesn’t look like that? Or maybe it doesn’t get that far because it’s all a scam and this person takes the money and runs without providing an address? Either way we were adequately skeeved out. And of course we contacted both the webmaster of the site along with the “landlord” to let them know that those images were ours and they were firmly planted in Richmond and not for rent. Pretty soon thereafter they were removed. Whew. But so odd right?!
It ranked up there with the time that another reader (thanks Michael!) wrote to us shortly after our big bathroom reveal to tell us that they saw some girl named Amber on Rate My Space claiming our bathroom after photos as hers.
The good news is that it was getting great feedback. But the bad news was that it wasn’t her bathroom! The funniest thing about that situation was that Amber was answering questions about the paint color and where she got things (all of which were wrong, so we were totally confused to see her claim that our $100 Overstock sink was a $400 splurge from Kohler and that the walls were some shade called Cucumber Dream instead of the actual Dune Grass hue that we used). Isn’t that weird? Of course we just commented under the post with a link to our site saying “Wait- that’s actually our bathroom! You can see where we got everything and how it all came together by following this link.” Literally within a minute the post was removed.
Actually now that we think about it, the Rate My Space thing might have been stranger than the room rental incident because the room rental person seemed to be in it for the money, so the idea of a scammer stealing a photo and trying to make some loot with it kind of makes sense. But isn’t it odd that someone found a photo of our bathroom and thought it would somehow be rewarding to claim it as their own on Rate My Space (where there’s no dough on the line)? Maybe she didn’t feel like redoing her bathroom so she thought using our photos would be a shortcut? Or she thought it would be funny? Consider us stumped.
Thank goodness for all of our lovely readers who have eagle eyes and thoughtfully email us every time they see our casa somewhere that it doesn’t belong. We’re used to hearing that our pictures are on eBay or Craigslist when someone’s trying to sell an identical rug or duvet. And we even saw before and after photos of our front yard on some landscaping guy’s website in Texas (so crazy, right?!). But the latest Rate My Space and vacation rental listing have been the most odd by far. What do you guys think? Can you figure out some ulterior motive for the Rate My Space thing? Have you ever seen your photos somewhere they didn’t belong? Do tell.
Stan says
That’s terrible!! Thank goodness for those readers who caught that.
Next thing you know someone will have a video of Burger, claiming they taught him all his tricks… Weak sauce, my friends! Very weak, indeed!
Cassie says
Imitation is the highest form of flattery!
Andrea says
That’s so creepy! EEEK!
Amy says
How bizarre! I wonder whether adding a watermark or tiny copyright image to your photos would help prevent this sort of shenanigans (although it could also mar the simple beauty of your photos…kind of a catch 22 there).
Debra says
Seems like she might have took too much medication the day she listed the photos on rate my space as her own, or maybe she “imagines” it’s her space, whatever it’s crazy.
amyks says
Okay, that is so bizarre…obviously you guys are doing so many great things and have amazing ideas, but how do people justify “stealing” your images and then using them as their own. I just don’t get it!
heather s. says
Wow. The rental thing is just creepy. I don’t understand how some people have absolutely no ethics at all and try to claim someone else’s work as their own.
Chelsea says
That’s so weird!! I’m so glad your readers caught it & told you. I’d hate for people to get scammed! The only thing that’s ever happened to me is when I was a YOUNG girl & used Xanga, someone stole my pictures & pretended it was her. Once I found her & my friends found her, she deleted it ASAP. I’d be a little weirded out now if I found something like that or like this happen.
Thanks for sharing!
Brooke says
Holy crap, I’d be so majorly creeped out if I were you guys! (I even deleted my blog a year ago because I got so worried about cyber-stalking!) I know you guys are in the business now, so maybe you could put a watermark on your photos to make it harder for people to steal? I guess that would make it also harder for us to see your work! I hope the creepsters stay far away from you- I’m glad you have that home security system for Burger and baby Clara. :)
virginia says
Wow, the nerve of people never ceases to amaze! I’m so glad that was caught and taken care of.
I’m sure it’s only because your place is so awesome people want to steal images of it, but either they’re pretty dumb or they don’t realize how popular this site is! I think I’d recognize any photos of your place instantly if I saw it somewhere else!
Anthony says
That is the craziest thing I have ever heard! Sounds like you took it all in stride, but I’d be really freaked out. I guess it could be really flattering. Glad you cleared it up.
Lina says
More than weird, it’s actually kind of scary knowing there are people who stoop so low. It may help to put a small copyright on the bottom of all your photos. Not the prettiest thing to look at, but only a good Photoshopper would be able to remove it.
kathy k says
hi friends,
i have mixed feelings on this topic. on the one hand, i am furious when people use others’ material as their own and so paranoid little me always puts a watermark on posted pics. On the other hand, it’s kind of flattering – it means your stuff rocks enough for someone to WISH they had created it themselves.
In your case, one was a money scam… and the other was maybe a virtual confidence booster? best guess :) I’m glad they took the pics down though, at least they are aware that it’s wrong.
keep up the great work!! you’ve given me so many great ideas and tips!!
can you post more pics, my website needs more.. errhmm…. (just kidding, of course!)
xox
Christine says
CREEPY. with a capital ‘C’. I’m glad there are readers out there that have your back.
Some people!!?
1916home.net says
Do you have an address in Pasadena? I live close by and can check it out for you!
YoungHouseLove says
We don’t have the address for it. So sorry! I think that’s something they release when you book it or something, because it wasn’t on the listing. Thanks for the thought though!
xo,
s
Christy says
This is indeed creepy, but I can’t say I’m surprised. The Rate My Space person must have just been craving some serious attention. It didn’t matter that there was no money involved, she just wanted the credit and the praise. It’s gotta be a sickness or extremely low self esteem.
Now that I’m getting familiar with the site (addicted, actually), I’ll keep my eyes open if I see anything fishy going on. Good luck keeping the crazies at bay!
Natalie S says
I’ve been spending some time on TheBump.com forums since I’m 15 wks pregnant. Apparently it’s common for mom’s of multiples, especially with triplets and higher to have photos of their kids stolen and used by people who claim them as their own. Isn’t that creepy! So is someone using your home photos and claiming them as their own (especially when the only gain is praise from strangers!). I would definitely watermark them! And if I ever see your photos on someone else’s site being claimed as their own I’ll be sure you let you know! So weird!!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey guys,
Thanks for the watermarking idea everyone! We hate to put a big YHL seal in the middle of our photos, and putting one in the bottom or the corner just means people will crop the photo to get rid of it. Boo! So for now we’ll just stick to retroactively asking the few-and-far-between scammers to remove our pics if they use them (since there are far more people who enjoy our photos without doing anything shady with them- thank goodness!).
xo,
s
Susan says
Wow – that is bizarro! I second Amy’s suggestion to include a watermark or copyright notice on each photo. It may not dissuade those who are really handy with PhotoShop, but most people will either leave it alone or look ridiculously stupid when they post your photos with a clearly marked copyright or watermark.
The watermark could be really artful, too, like the ones in this post: http://www.wasabimon.com/archive/food-blogger-charity-burggraaf/
Jenn C. says
Sounds like someone just wanting attention. “Oh look at me and all the work I did!” Except they didn’t. It happens all the time. My photos have been used a dozen times this way and I’m pondering this issues as I get ready to start my own blog.
Thankfully you have eyes and ears in all lands, and they’ll tell you when some hater’s claiming work that rightfully belongs to you. :-)
Rebecca says
I lived in Los Angeles for many years and the first one is probably a money making scam.
I’m no pathos expert, but it sounds like Amber could be a compulsive/pathological liar. Usually they have low self esteem and the great compliments she gets on “her bathroom” makes her feel good from the attention she gets. Or drugs makes you nuts.
NancyV908 says
I think your response is surprisingly measured–maybe it was less so initially. I would be furious! It’s not just weird & creepy, it’s wrong, b/c it’s theft. I suppose that kind of thing will always happen on the web, but still….& there are probably other examples that people haven’t caught.
sara says
HA HA that’s crazy and super creepy! I’m thinking the Rate My Space thing was probably someone who wished they could have a nice house like yours and wanted compliments…sounds like that person is living in a fairytale land where they are you. Yeah, that rental thing is a total scam, what nasty people live in this world, huh?
Kelsey says
ewww creepy!!!!
Amanda says
Okay this is really weird. I did a post TODAY about that site, talking about how it might be kinda fun! (Then I updated the post with a link to here, and sentiments about possibly changing my mind…)
WEIRD! But I do agree, the Rate My Space thing is a titch weirder.
Jenny says
wow – that is really weird! I have not seen anyone try to blatantly steal your work. When I have come across it on other sites, they either link to yours or explicitly say where it’s from.
Kudos to those who alerted you to it! That’s so great!!
Mel says
I’m actually not surprised. I used to work for a custom computer store that had some well-written blurbs on their website describing the quality of their machines and their commitment to their customers. I used to amuse myself on quiet days by googling some of the more distinctive phrases to find plagiarists – there’d usually be half a dozen to a dozen other sites that copied our stuff word for word. Including the bits about integrity!
I once found someone who had copied most of the website, including the entire highly customized ordering system, page for page, and then tried to substitute in their own products. They even copied our customer testimonials, one of which still had our business name in it, and the ‘about’ page still had the real owner’s contact info on it. We got that one removed right quick.
Makayla says
I broke my wrist a couple years ago and took a picture of my thumb and wrist in the cast. It was a real close up and that was all you could see. I posted the picture on my then public blog and on flickr. About a year later I noticed that a lot of my traffic for this picture and post were coming from a certain website so I followed it. Turns out it was an Italian Fetish website for women in casts. You had to create a username and password, which I didn’t do, but I could tell by the header and footer of women in full body casts and bikinis what was going on. Pretty much freaked me out and I have since been super careful and private about what I put on the web. But seriously, women in full body casts and bikinis!?! I don’t get it.
r8chel says
A very similar thing happened to me recently!
When I had my house on the market a few months ago, a woman stopped by one evening because she had seen it posted on Craigslist as a house to RENT! The Craigslist ad even included pictures of the interior of my home that had been available through the MLS. Oh, and apparently my husband “Fred” and I are missionaries in Nigeria. Who knew? :)
Clearly someone was trying to scam potential renters, but it felt really weird to know that someone was impersonating me with a believable email address and everything!
CasaCullen says
i agree, no watermark! ugh, it’s sooo fug that way!
well, for my fashion blog (www.RunwayDaily.com) we actually found some lady CLAIMING to be runwaydaily and writing my articles on another blog of hers! yeah…that FLOORED me for sure! i left her a note and poof…blog was shut down – BUSTED!
i mean, we bloggers spend so much time on our content and it made me sick to think someone out there was actually doing pretty much ‘identity theft’ online and being ME!!!
so yeah, creepy creepster for SURE!
our lil’ home design blog baby isn’t HUGE like y’all so i don’t imagine i’d see any of OUR before and afters anywhere, tee hee hee! one day…one day, hopefully!
imitation is the highest form of flattery but this just takes it ALL too far!
cheers – the CasaCullen crew
Lin says
Well the way I understand it is that Airbnb holds the money “in escrow” until after the guest has finished their stay.
So I’m not exactly sure how the lister would have made money, unless it was a “bait and switch” type thing.
I recently rented an apartment in Paris through Airbnb and had no issues. :)
Corrie says
Sort of related have you ever seen http://youthoughtwewouldntnotice.com/blog3/ ?
Website dedicated to exposing people who have had their creative work stolen and used by others. Some of these are pretty egregious people who have photos/artwork online for free having their images stolen by companies and used to make a profit.
liz @ bon temps beignet says
How creepy is that?!
BTW, I’d pay a lot more than $48 to stay at your house!!!! They sold you waaay short.
Amy @ Renovation Innovation says
There is a saying in the north of England – “there’s nowt as queer as folk”. People can be very odd sometimes, which is precisely why I love psychology! I’ve found several photos from my house renovation blog on other home-related blogs, but the two pictures I most often find in random places across the Internet are this one of a moth and this little green bug. Weird!
Handy Man, Crafty Woman says
that’s really weird!!!
Cindy says
I have been on some websites where you can’t right click on an image. That would keep people from copying or saving your image…or at least detour them. It’s just a shame that you have to worry about this at all.
Katie says
Eww, this is so weird. Good thing you guys take so many safety precautions!
A tad creepier, IMO: my wedding photographer has a blog which includes a personal category where she posts pictures of her family and her two small girls. Someone took the photos of the little girls and created a blog where they pretended the girls were their own. They made up names for the little girls and told stories about the silly things they supposedly did. Isn’t that awful?
ALVN of WhisperWood Cottage & Junkologie says
All of those incidents are crazy! It’s hard to understand the motives and ethics of people sometimes. I watermark all of my photos, so that probably helps prevent these kinds of issues. Though I have a friend who had her watermarked photo end up in an hgtv post…without her permission. Nothing as strange as what you’ve had to deal with though!
jen says
I really don’t understand people and what the heck they are thinking? I think the word “creepy” best describes it.
I am sorry that both of these things happened to you guys and just hope you will keep sharing all of your terrific renovations with the normal people here who love it so!
Jen
Martha says
Considering how hideous many rented beaches houses/cabins are, I can see the temptation to copy someone’s style. Of course I would assume they would actually redecorate. Maybe the owner was just lazy. ;-)
I don’t know the technical bits, but there is a way to prevent right-click downloads. Professional photographers use it, along with the watermark. Using the technical solution to prevent right-clicks could help without ruining the beauty of the images. Just a thought …
Amy @ Renovation Innovation says
The link to the green bug doesn’t seem to be working, so here it is:
http://amyhogan.com/blog/renovation/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/greenbug1-732×1024.jpg
Courtney says
WEIRD! Just FYI, I do plan on totally copying your onsies week updates when our third little baby gets here in Nov… but I would NEVER take a photo of Clara and claim her as my own. LOL Which, let’s face it, is almost the same equivalent, right? Haha, okay.. perhaps not, but almost!
Patti says
Ooh, good catch from the readers … And I agree with you Sherry, don’t ruin your pics for the 99.9% of us who love the site just because some weirdos use your pics for ill once in a blue. But having said that, maybe watermark Baby P’s pics … those weirdos we can do without.
cassie @ hi sugarplum! says
Creepy MacCreeperson! Maybe they were trying to get traffic to their site or blog…and using your kickin pics to woo people?!
Nikki says
weird, weird, and more weird.
Sarah @ The Ugly Duckling House says
Truly bizarre. But, you can always take it as a very big (albeit schizoid) compliment that your designs are appealing to a wide audience! I’ve never heard of Airbnb, so it’s obvious that they were trying to fly under the radar and never be found out. But Rate My Space? On what planet did the girl believe she wouldn’t be noticed by tons of DIY enthusiasts who regularly read your blog? Funny and strange at the same time :)
Wendy says
Weirdos! In addition to your attentive readers, you can proactively use a reverse image search to see if any of your images/photos are out there. TIn Eye is the one I know: http://www.tineye.com (no, I don’t work for them or have any connection at all to Tin Eye)
Steph says
All of my photos on my blog are watermarked because I’ve had some stolen, too. Plus, I used to have a photography business and I know how common stealing photos is. You can do a small almost-invisible watermark on your photos that will not detract from them at all. It’s just a matter of what opacity you use. Your photos are wonderful – I’d hate to see someone else take the credit!
Leah says
Very strange! I don’t understand some people…
A few years ago some one stole pictures of me pregnant with my daughter (maybe from my flickr account when it was public?) and created a whole WEBSITE/journal fooling people with stories about “her” pregnancy and friends, baby shower, etc. It was infuriating to find out. Several of HER readers came to my blog and notified me about it and started to call her out about it. Thankfully, we were able to stop her before “her birth” and pictures of my daughter weren’t shared and it was taken down quickly.
WHY is this fun for people? Why can’t they be happy with their own lives? I did start marking every photo that I make public now on my blog and locked up my flickr/facebook so only friends could see it. Makes me feel a little safer :-)
Vhe says
Maybe the Rate My Space crazy lady is interested in launching her own interior design career and wanted to gain some cred? So it wouldn’t be for immediate or direct financial gratification, but possibly for a long-term portfolio to gain clientele? Whatever the reason, she’s nuts and I’m sorry you guys had to deal with that!
Susan says
Nothing surprises me! I echo the sentiments that your loyal readers are watching out for you. You do such a good job and we all enjoy your blog so much, that it is a shame that there are weirdos out there who have no life of their own. Sorry for such a long run-on sentence.