Image Protect tries again after 1 year

[Martial]

Wanted to share my story to see if there is anyone with a similar experience. I received an email from ImageProtect for an image of a donut. I received 1 email each week for 4 weeks, threatening litigation, and casually stating that copyright infringement would result in a $150,000 penalty. I spoke to my father and his lawyer. Both studied the letter and stated it looked like a scam. Funny thing is that Gmail parked it as [spam]. After 30 days, no further correspondence. Then they restarted again after a year. So far have only 1 email and have a week to respond, apparently. I will continue to ignore. Considering the nature of the image (a donut), and the quantity (1). If this does go to a lawyer, then I'll lawyer up. I have no money, but there is no reason to give in to this sort of extortion. Courts are supposed to protect you from such ridiculous situations, and I still do believe in a fair judgment. From this forum, it appears that most people face a similar situation. The communication seems to escalate as the years go on, and at times quietly disappears. Any feedback on my story would be appreciated. Thank you for this forum.

[kingkendall]

Keep your powder dry.  Do not respond and do not call  Document EVERYTHING.  Keep every letter, every email and every phone call and put it in a folder.  Other may disagree and say give them a call and negotiate. 

Here's my problem with that.  Unless you're a lawyer and very careful with your words, you can say something that puts you in a disadvantage.   But, let's you want to negotiate anyway.  And the copyright law firm is asking for 4,000, 5,000 or something ridiculous number.  Even if you negotiate it down 50% or even 75%, that still hundreds of dollars more than the photo is worth.  It's still extortion by legal means. 

 

 

[Martial]

Thank you for the response. I've never received a phone call or correspondence through the mail - just emails. This last email asked me if I was represented by a lawyer and that I should provide information about my legal team so that they can forward it to their legal team. Appears to be a tactic to make them appear more legit. Image Protect's website looks far less scammy then a year ago, which may simply suggest that there are many who have given into their fear tactics. I'm a bit confused about the one-year gap though. Original letter said that I would be pursued be Tetra Images legal counsel, but then states that Tetra Images is their client.