Someone's stealing my definitions

But how do they do it?

[kellymonaghan]

I recently discovered Google's "define:blue widget" service and the "Web definitions for blue widget" that pops up at the top when you search for a definition.

In the process, I discovered that someone has lifted definitons word for word from my online dictionary. Sometimes they appeared along with mine, many times only the stolen definition appeared.

Underneath the stolen definition, the link read like this
www.thieving-***.com/dic.D.html
giving the impression the link would take you to a dictionary. But a click on the link takes you to a search engine type page with lotsa links.

So it looks like they've somehow fooled Google into picking up stolen content along with a phony link.

I've filed a DMCA complaint with Google, but my question for the experts here is: How'd they do it?

[edited by: eelixduppy at 9:41 pm (utc) on Feb. 18, 2009]

[lucertola]

From what I understand google isn't that sensitive about the content it picks up, though in your case it does seem like a lot of it.

The guy who stole our content has an entire site that runs other people's (whole) copyrighted stories. Unless every copyright holder files a claim the site will run as is...

He tried to fool google when we filed the DMCA complaint by attributing the source of our story to another site, where the site's forum had posted a copy of our story.

Google folks said they couldn't 'find' the story in question, mixed with other stolen junk on the page, we had to point it out to them & explain the fake link to get it taken down.

Another story in question where the guy cited himself as the source after changing the first sentence and leaving the rest of the story exactly as is was not taken down -- apparently they thought this was enough change to doubt whether he stole it or not.

I'd think it'd be hard to prove definitions belong to you if google goes about it this way, unless you're talking about very specific or technical subjects, but I'm no expert or lawyer.