Shady web sites

[Chris Smith]

This is a place to inform others about web sites that are on the shady side.

 

I am starting this discussion because of a recent incident.Earlier this week I was informed by a member of this community that one of my pictures was being used without my knowledge or permission. The picture was being used to sell a commercial system for £1,000.00. The site claims that they are "aquaponic experts" but do not have their own pictures to use. Most of their products seen to be more hydro stuff.

The site is also using the BYAP nitrogen cycle diagram. It seems they copied and pasted what ever pictures and images that they wanted off this site and others and used them on their own site. After many nasty emails they took my picture down and replaced it with another one that was likely ripped.

With the explosion in popularity of AP this kind of thing will become more common and there will be more sited out there trying to rip us off. We need to be vigilant and keep a look out for these shady sites and warn others.

[Frank De Block-Burij (hygicell)]

to my findings on the whois research the registrants are companies like Whoisguard or Enom which specialise in services helping people to stay anonymous

I can see the need for this in situations where one's identity has to be protected for i.e. political reasons

not for honest aquaponics

Frank

RupertofOZ said:

Frank... the registrant of the website can be found...

 

He certainly isn't a "Mr. John Fay" however.... (a pseudonom)... but apparantly a "certified organic gardener"... and a "worldwide aquaponics authority"...

 

Which makes the legal cease and desist letter issued to BYAP somewhat funny... as it lists Mr. John Fay as the complainant...

 

P.S ... a google of the "legal" company that appears to be acting for the non-existant Mr. John Fay.... throws up a plethora of disparaging remarks...

[TCLynx]

There are software and ways you can watermark your own pictures easily enough before posting them, and I expect you can do it with your videos too.

 

However, I fear that stuff already posted has been picked up by google images and as to going in and watermarking all the stuff already posted... When Sylvia gets back home, she may be able to ask the NING creators about a way to do it, but so far in my experience, this isn't the easiest platform to add things like that.  It doesn't even let her merge topics together.

[RupertofOZ]

Mr Fay... and his ebook and affiliates popped up around December 2010 Kobus...

 

Indeed there's been a plethora of "aquaponic" websites registered since then... nearly all of them as part of the affiliate marketing scheme...

[RupertofOZ]

Sylvia, and others .. be wary if you get an approach like this... which both Joel and the most prominent UK aquaponicists have received...

"

Hi,

I'm looking for someone to make me a video about aquaponics for my new product, basically I want someone to demostrate on video how to make (from scratch) and run an aquaponics system in simple terms using things that can be sourced from the local D.I.Y store if possible.

Would this be something you would be interested in (for a fee of course), its just that I was impressed with your knowledge of aquaponics and thought you would be perfect for the job.

If you are you can reply to me here or add me on skype XXXXXXX where we can discuss the finer details and the payment.

Thanks"

 

It smacks of another e-book/DVD affiliate marketing scam...

 

Other websites of the "gentleman" concerned are...

 

downloadps3games
pushbuttonpips
ps3quickdownload
1clickcashbot
etc, etc...

So he wants someone else to produce a video for him explaining how to make a system and operate a system, at least 1 hour long, which he can then sell via a dodgy affiliate method...

[Frank De Block-Burij (hygicell)]

I believe I have found another one worthy of thorough inspection:

urbanecologicalsystems DOT com

found them through meandering through the European patents office on the word aquaponics

(sorry for the dutch version but the patent documents are in English)

stumbled on this:

http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/description?CC=US...

these people seem to claim to have invented it all

nothing new as far as I can see

so if you agree we should start an opposition procedure

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_proceeding

as the patent request originates in Australia, this would best be done in Australia

any volunteers?

Frank

[Kobus Jooste]

I cannot see any of the figures, and also not any date for the first publication of the patent.  Without those, I cannot really make any comment, but with the wealth of stuff published on the internet already, this patent on the surface of it looks rather pointless

Frank De Block-Burij said:

I believe I have found another one worthy of thorough inspection:

urbanecologicalsystems DOT com

found them through meandering through the European patents office on the word aquaponics

(sorry for the dutch version but the patent documents are in English)

stumbled on this:

http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/description?CC=US...

these people seem to claim to have invented it all

nothing new as far as I can see

so if you agree we should start an opposition procedure

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_proceeding

as the patent request originates in Australia, this would best be done in Australia

any volunteers?

Frank

[Frank De Block-Burij (hygicell)]

I  just noticed a button in the upper right corner where you can change the language

next there are buttons on the left where you can choose

• Bibliographic data
• Description
• Claims
• Mosaics
• Original document
• INPADOC LEGAL status

click on original document and you can download it in .pdf format 

the only possibly original drawing (#1) shows a system to remove solids (later called a "waste guidance means"), which might or might not be the core of the invention, but the description of the drawing gives no explanation at all as to it's functioning or performance or merits nor even to it's shape or construction

the most interesting part are the claims: almost the complete aquaponics knowledge is claimed as their invention

if the solids removal device is what the invention is about, that is what should be stated and explained in depth

maybe I should expand a little more on the purpose of the patents system:

the publication of patents is not intended solely to (rightly) protect the interests and investments of the inventors

inventors deserve this protection for their efforts

it is also meant to allow people to develop even better systems

and by the way: as far as I know, anybody can freely use any publicised patent for personal, non commercial purposes

Frank

[RupertofOZ]

Frank these are the guys from "Nimbin".... an old hippy commune from the 70's that nows becoming "entrepenual"...

 

We loving refer to them as the "ferris wheel" mob.... because they exhibited, and won, a local inventor of the year TV award... for a rotating aquaponics system... back in 2008 from memory...

 

They claimed then to have "invented" aquaponics... totally ignoring the fact that Joel Malcolm at BYAP already was producing kit systems and had a thriving aquaponics forum...

 

The matter of their "patent" claim was raised some time ago... and challenged... and advise was given that the application would fail....

 

This appears to be a re-write though... and is even more dangerous than the first... covering ever single aspect of aquaponics... from system design to compost worms and BSF...

 

I'll chase it up and check the dates... as the original patent claim would now be lapsed...

 

They've been trying to franchise their "ferris wheel system", complete with remote computer backend accounting system.. for years... with zero success... until recently...

 

And at a price tag of about $1.5 million... hardly surprising....

 

Apparantly they have recently secured a sale... (in principle)... in conjunction with a university research department... but little progress has been made...as they're still trying to raise capital...

[Frank De Block-Burij (hygicell)]

new style "hippies" seem to think that the old, idealistic, honest and perseverant ones like me are by now extinct

well, I've got news for them
I may have lost a few teeth over the years, but the ones I kept are razor sharp ;-))

if you can find the universtity involved, we should inform them

even the name was stolen (borrowed ???) from some valuable scientific papers

somehow they managed to get a higher google ranking so these other sources for "urban ecological systems" only appear on pages 2 etc...

and again there is a chain: naturalinnovation DOT org is supporting them without any sense of criticism

I wonder who sponsors them, as such a setup must cost a lot

... ??? hippies ??? no way, these are shrewd businessmen with apparently links up into the government:

if you dig a little deeper:

commercialisationaustralia DOT gov DOT au

... DOT gov DOT au ???

 

this is why I love the Internet :-))

I have an idea to which you all who are interested might subscribe

please PM me at [e-mail]

 

but in fact it is your cup of tea, as I am in Belgium and almost literally your antipode ;-)))

Frank

 

RupertofOZ said:

Frank these are the guys from "Nimbin".... an old hippy commune from the 70's that nows becoming "entrepenual"...

 

We loving refer to them as the "ferris wheel" mob.... because they exhibited, and won, a local inventor of the year TV award... for a rotating aquaponics system... back in 2008 from memory...

 

They claimed then to have "invented" aquaponics... totally ignoring the fact that Joel Malcolm at BYAP already was producing kit systems and had a thriving aquaponics forum...

 

The matter of their "patent" claim was raised some time ago... and challenged... and advise was given that the application would fail....

 

This appears to be a re-write though... and is even more dangerous than the first... covering ever single aspect of aquaponics... from system design to compost worms and BSF...

 

I'll chase it up and check the dates... as the original patent claim would now be lapsed...

 

They've been trying to franchise their "ferris wheel system", complete with remote computer backend accounting system.. for years... with zero success... until recently...

 

And at a price tag of about $1.5 million... hardly surprising....

 

Apparantly they have recently secured a sale... (in principle)... in conjunction with a university research department... but little progress has been made...as they're still trying to raise capital...

[the mad german]

SO how does 1 respond to an after the fact stealing of your video for their website?

[TCLynx]

Start by contacting them and asking them to remove your video from their web site.  [e-mail]

 

Otherwise I suppose you could edit your youtube video, perhaps put a watermark on it.

[the mad german]

Will putting a watermark after the fact work?

So I'm guessing this a direct feed from youtube? Sorry and forgive me if I sound like a dumbarse, when it comes to this stuff... I really am when it comes to workings of the web and appreciate the help, advice and guidance.