This SCAM has just blarred in my face. The screencaptures below tell the story. This doesn’t just affect me, but EVERYONE who publishes with KDP (Amazon). I’m guessing the owners of the site ReadEveryBooks.com downloads a title, free cos they have Kindle Unlimited, then copy it to mobi file (easy to do) and offer it on their site. It says Free but that’s only to register, and to register you must give Credit Card details.
Advice on what to do now. I have tried to contact the site owners. Not possible. I have tweeted Ms Beckman to ask her to remove the tweet and advise her she’s breaking copyright. I’m about to explore KDP for a way to report. After all, they’re being ripped off too.
Is there anything I or we can do to help? I don’t have twitter.
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I’ve tried to report it to KDP/Amazon but I go round in circles cos … forms, you know. And if it doesn’t quite fit, the system rejects it.
I’m hoping the big guns will get hold of it. Meanwhile I have a list of book bloggers, I shall email them the link to this post.
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OMG! Thanks so much for posting this and please keep us updated. I have two children’s books and one novella on KDP.
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As I’ve just told Jen, I’m having trouble contacting KDP; the situation doesn’t quite conform to their standardised form.
However, I’ve a list of book-bloggers who might be interested in taking this up. Also, perhaps the big guys will latch to it and take it up on everyone’s behalf.
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I’ll share your post on Facebook.
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Thank you. And I’ll repeat as I’ve said on other replies, I just hope I’m not seeing devils where there are none. But the untrustworthy state of the site, does give the picture.
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I got a comment on Facebook and thought I’d share it with you.
Most of these websites are phishing sites looking for personal information. If we should get scared to publish because of these thieves, we would never achieve our goals. Most of these sites don’t even have the books they claim to have, they just want your information.
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Well, as I said, I have now reported it to Twitter as a potential phishing site. I am just so naive about social media and stuff, the terminology goes way over my head
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I have now reported it on twitter
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Reblogged this on Jen Goldie – A little this, a little that, some real and some imaginings. and commented:
SCAM WRITTEN LOUD – By Crispina Kemp 3/12/2020 about her new book series THE SPINNERS GAME on Amazon
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Thanks, Jen. The more coverage the better
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My pleasure! Anything I can do to try and help Crispina
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π
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Reblogged on my Site
https://jengoldie493473930.wordpress.com/2020/03/12/scam-written-loud/
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Again, thanks Jen
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This is awful! I hope you find a way to resolve this.
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Apparently, not directly with KDP. Their standardised form isn’t geared for this. Three attempts to steer a way round it. Fourth attempt will probably induce a heart attack. π
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It’s a copyright violation. You can report the person who made the tweet to Twitter if they aren’t responding to your requests.
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I thank you for that. I started a twitter account a couple of years back, but am not active. I only discovered this cos I have a Google Alert set for Spinner’s Game. Up till now it’s only brought me crickets news. Then this afternoon… the tweet.
I’ll give them a day to respond, then I shall pursue further. Thing is, until my books go live on 21st March, no one can rip them.
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Wish you good luck. I hope they respond and remove the link.
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But it’s not just me. This tweeter has tweeted links for hundreds of writers and their books.
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yes, online copyright infringement is a huge pain in the a** and something that happens so frequently that most people take aggressive measure to protect their creative content. I am not familiar with the protection measures with self-published books and how Amazon does right by its publishers so I can’t comment on that. However, I doubt people who rip off copyrighted material do so with the intention of removing it later when confronted. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take any measures. Reporting to twitter is one of the ways to go about.
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I just hope I’m not misinterpreting the evidence. Yet that ScamDoc report doesn’t look good. This is no reputable site.
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I am done for today but will look into it tomorrow to check it’s credibility. First glance gave me the same impression that they post ripped off content to lure readers to their website.
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Yea. There’s another site involved. That has a contact button… which lands you on the ReadEveryBooks site. And the only way to contact that site is to register… and leave you CC details. Are you that stupid?
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If it asks for your credit credentials before letting you view any of the materials they say they have, then it may very well be a bluff. And usually, or, at least what I think is the logical step, is that nobody wants to go to a shady site, enter their credentials just to buy novels that have just entered the market. Unless they are from popular authors, it doesn’t make sense that people would visit here and go through the tedious process of registration. Serious readers would rather want to support the authors…I hope… though I carry no torch of optimism for people’s mentality.
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Well, I have now reported it to the company that hosts the site. I have received an email to say they will investigate. They have given it high priority… so they say.
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Good. That’s quite a headway in a matter of minutes. If they don’t do anything, there are other ways to approach this problem. But I do want to caution you that there are too many of these websites and it’s like dealing with a Lernaean hydra. Cut off one head and another replaces it.
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Yea, I know. Just hoping if they get their fingers bitten with me this once, they might decide to give me a wide berth in future. Yea, well, I always was a Polyanna! π
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π good. There is too much cynicism in the world anyway.
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π
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The other site links via Twitter: we-books.ga
It’s like a forum. Quote:
Hey there, anyone has Lake of Dreams (The Spinners Game Book 2) – Crispina Kemp (Ebook), searched all the web couldn’t find anywhere.
And an answer:
Here is the =>> Link <<= , was searching for it myself, found only on this fileshare. most popular formats available PDF, ePub, Mobi, TXT, azw, djv and AudioBook.
And guess where the link takes you. ReadEveryBooks.com
But hey, I'm getting coverage. Seems someone wants to buy my book π
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Is there a date for the comments? Were they posted the day the link for your books was posted? They might be fake. Just to show other visitors that people are taking interest. If they are real, it is one way to get the word out about your book though. Now that you are on twitter, you can also do a little self advertising about your books. There are many folks there that help support new coming writers.
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The first comment is dated 6th March, as is the reply. Two days later, in answer to a query of why the CC is required, a Senior Member of the forum says:
CC just to make sure you aren’t bot
Hmm, indeed.
And I’ve had a twitter since early 2018. But I couldn’t get on with it. I debated closing it but… I’m aware it could be useful.
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I am really, and I mean really, bad at the art of self advertising so I can’t say much about it. Just that, from what I have read and seen people do, social media tends to most of the heavy lifting in promoting your creative pieces. In case of self-publishing, you also need to focus on self-promotion. But you already know that. Try to connect with like minded writers whenever time permits is all I’ll say on the topic. Rest, I know you can figure out. π
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Thanks. yea. That was the original reason. I shall do a twitter push… once I’m live on Amazon. Just got to get my head around it.
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As always, my good wishes, love and light your way!
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I thank you. I’ll keep you informed π
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Looking forward to it. π
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π
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BTW, if you check out Eunice Beckman, you’ll find I follow her. I wanted to keep an eye on her activities
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Good instinct.
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The only reason I keep the notifications on is so I know if I get a mention. The answer is no. Until today.
BTW, the tweet went out on 10th March.
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So it all happened within a week. The comments and the mention. Have you heavily promoted your books on other social platforms that might have made people interested in getting their hands on an illegal copy? If I were you I would keep an eye on that website and keep checking their forums. See how many comments it keeps getting about other books and the kind of response it generates. I know it sounds tedious. Have you made contact with other authors whose books they are offering for downloads. Twitter is the best way to do that.
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I have offered The Spinner’s Child for review to several Book Bloggers. But that’s not the book that’s being offered. Sammi has promoted The Spinner’s Child on facebook, as well as WP. That’s about it. And I haven’t been through the other books yet. Can’t do it tonight. I must come off the computer now else I won’t be able to sleep.
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Hmm… Let’s leave it for tomorrow. Take rest and don’t worry. It’s going to be alright. Good night!
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π π π
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There should be a way to report the website that lists your books for free download. Since they too must have a kindle account to gain access to your content, once reported, it can be suspended. Take screen shots of the website’s page that mentions your books and then email it to the appropriate authority mentioned on KDP. I have only taken a cursory glance at it but seems like a way to go.
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Tried that. I have to fill in a form, and the form doesn’t conform to the situation. However, I have now written to the editor of Writing News Magazine… the major writing mag in UK, giving him all the information. So I’m hoping he might pick it up. Meanwhile, unless you fill in a form stating what you had last Christmas Eve for your dinner, you can’t contact KDP
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Wow! KDP’s forms to address customer’s grievances needs a huge makeover if you can’t even file a complaint against a possible copyright infringement against one of their users. I haven’t given it a thorough read but I still think there must be a way to reach Amazon’s customer services to take some kind of precautionary measure so that the said website won’t be able to download your work given that they intend to sell/use it illegally.
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But how do they identify the relevant persons? You can open an account on Twitter using any name. And the ReadEveryBooks site doesn’t list a name… which is the alarming point. So how does KDP identify this person? Yet to accept my complaint they wanted to know stuff that relates to companies, not to the independant lone writer. Example:
Are you the Owner of the Intellectual Property or an Authorized Agent:
Your Company Name:
Your Name (First and Last name):
Your Job Title:
Your Phone Number:
Available Contact Day and Time:
Rights Owner Business Name:
Rights Owner Contact Name (First and Last name):
Rights Owner Job Title:
Rights Owner Phone Number:
Rights owner Address:
Rights Owner URL:
Business Tax ID
That last is a killer.
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Yeah, that last one’s been designed so that you give up all hope…to live! Seriously, what a headache!
You can find out the site’s domain owner and sometimes, if you’re lucky and the owner is dumb, even contact information using
WhoIs database. Did you try it?
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No. I’m about to. Thanks.
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Thank you for that. I have just sent an email to their abuse@ email address. And I see I’ve just got a reply. Probably an automated response.
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Great! I hope it works out. I hope they remove the links. See also – how to report a fraud website.
You might find links where you can file a report against the website owners and force them to take it down. The cyber laws in UK are, for now, seem to be following the European legal framework so I don’t think you’ll have to search any UK specific authority. But I might be wrong. If that person doesn’t respond encouragingly, then this will be one option to consider.
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The EU office for internet copyright does its own trawling. They’ll find it independant of me, but I’m helping by making it loud.
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I have now reported it to Twitter
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Good. Hope they take down the account. It won’t do much good because usually these are fake accounts and they keep cropping up. Still, something’s better than nothing.
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Anything that alerts the perps to folks being onto them, will satisfy me. But more so, to let others know it’s happening
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I agree.
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Horrible. Maddening. Frustrating. Thanks for making us all aware about this Scam. I hope you get some action from KDP.
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I doubt it. I had to come away, their form requirements were confusing me. But I do have 30 days to return to it. So… I shall try again. Trouble is, that form is designed for companies. What is my job position? etc.
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I have no reported it to Twitter
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Thanks for the heads-up!
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The more people know of it… I just hope I’ve not overreacted and seen devils where they are none. But that ScamDoc report does tend seal it
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I have now reported it on twitter
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This is terrible. I hope who you can get through to Amazon before yours go live. I am thinking they will grab a title that will end them up in hot water- but better sooner than later.
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Thanks. I’m slowly trying all avenues. Magazines, book bloggers, hoping someone will pick it up. And I shojd be so lucky that someone will want to buy mine. It’s not even the first book!
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A horror… Thanks for tell us about this. I suggest you go on KDP (Amazon) and request a “call back” by phone and address the issue in person as well.
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I would follow your advice… if I could find a way to it. But, regardless, although to alert them is good practice, as I’ve argued elsewhere, they have no way to identify the perpetrator.
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Log into KDP
Click HELP button at top
Scroll down HELP page and on bottom left you’ll find a CONTACT US button
On that page you’ll click OTHER (in place of choosing one of their help posts)
There you’ll be able to explain problem and request an EMAIL or CALL BACK from a KDP rep
Good luck all around!
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I shall try this, I thank you for your help. Though, as I have said in other comments, I’m not sure KDP can do anything. If all the books offered are as yet on pre-order (those I’ve checked out are) then as yet no copyright crime has been committed.
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Sharing with my followers, Crispina!
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Thank you. This is no longer about me, and about books. This is Credit Card fraud.
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Yep! Got it! Too many scammers in the world. Where’s the karma!?
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But we do not know what’s been around that’ll come around for them π
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Yep, I agree. It seems every day there are new scams and it’s annoying. I worked hard and made an honest living before I retired and it angers me to see jerks take advantage of others.
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I echo that… loudly π
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Reblogged this on Eugi's Causerie and commented:
For those of us that publish via KDP/Amazon, this may be of interest –
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Thanks. But as in my first comment, the real danger here is Credit Card fraud π
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Yes!
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π
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My posts from WordPress automatically post to Twitter. My reblog of this post is on Twitter now.
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That’s good. It seems to be where they’re drawing their customers from. I have an account, but not used it these past two years, not not exactly heavy with followers.
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Can you DRM protect your book? It makes it a lot harder to rip your book off a Kindle Unlimited description (though probably not impossible).
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Thanks for your thoughts. Thursday’s post was my immediate reaction… pre-deep thought. Having investigated further and thought it through, I see this less of a case of piracy and copyright infringement, and more a matter of credit card fraud and identity theft. In other words, our books are being used as bait. The real victims are the gulliable idiots who fall for it.
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That’s still terrible!
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Oh yes, that’s why I want to publicise it. Not for myself. For others
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What a crowd of low-lifes are out there, hey? They might have my books too, where they are under KU.
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I think they’re not intending to download the books. As soon as they do, they commit the crime. What they’re after is credit card details.
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But I can’t swear to that.
You could check that twitter account, scroll through the countless authors, to see if you’re included
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I will do that. Thanks.
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Happy to help π
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How awful. I have published with KDP too.π
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On further investigation, I’m pretty sure the scam isn’t piracy and copyright infringement, but identity theft and credit card fraud. Which doesn’t make it all right.
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π
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