The search engine, as well as owners of businesses, have been concerned with the problem related to the existence of sites and platforms that have been distributing content illegally or simply stealing (copying) it from other platforms.
If you are an owner of a platform with any kind of content, it is crucial to consider two possible impacts of Google’s Pirate Update algorithm.
The first one is related to distributing materials that do not belong to you (intentionally or unintentionally), while the second one is the theft of your publications, information, or content.
Let us consider these matters.
Intentional Vs. Unintentional Distribution of Stolen Content
When it comes to the first one, all the torrent sites and platforms allowing users to download or view, for instance, movies and songs, are out of the law.
In this respect, it is a direct violation of digital space copyright.
Therefore, if you have ever been involved in such activities, think about the consequences.
However, how to protect your platform from publishing stolen content unintentionally? Here are some tips:
- Hire only professional and reliable employees who will never resort to copying texts or other content instead of creating their own.
- Use paid tools to check the uniqueness of the texts; it is also better to use several resources to be entirely sure that the articles and posts are written from scratch.
- Be ready to invest in taking professional pictures and shooting videos so that your employees should not resort to different tricks. Alternatively, make use of content with creative commons licenses.
Protection of Your Content
If you have taken the above measures and are sure that every single post and picture on your website is unique, it is crucial to protect your hard work from being stolen.
Unfortunately, there is no surefire way to safeguard your platform.
Even watermarks can be removed, while texts protected from copying can be even retyped.
However, some steps can decrease the chances that the robots will steal your content and fall under the sanctions of the search engine, which is the worst outcome in this case:
- Registration of your trademark (brand) makes it illegal for anyone else to use your logo and brand name. It is also useful to get in touch with lawyers that may clarify all the legislation related to intellectual property and how to correctly protect it.
- Notify Google when you make a new post in the Search Console. The screenshot with the date of publication will be evidence that you are the first one to publish the content.
- Leave mentions of your brand in the text. Thieves will hardly edit the text, and using your registered brand is a direct violation of the applicable legislation.
- Make announcements on social media, which will be another proof of being the first to post content.
The above steps and thorough following of the copyright legislation in force will help you avoid unpleasant situations with unpleasant consequences.