The launch of ChatGPT and other generative AI platforms surprised many people who did not expect the software to be so well-informed. It was only later that the general population learned that AI had been trained on billions of documents that are available online. These include blogs, newspapers, and other forms of content that are protected by copyright laws. The process is automated and far-reaching. You may be wondering, “How do I stop AI from stealing my content?”
What Is Content Theft?
Content theft is unlawful. Anyone who engages in content theft could be liable for damages and legal costs. This type of theft is the act of stealing someone’s published content, which is usually from a website or app. The theft of content takes hard-earned intellectual property from someone else and makes it useful to the thief, which may be a person, bot, or AI. Scraper bots (alternatively known as web crawlers) are often used to steal content online.
Content theft is a serious matter for businesses and individuals who have their original content stolen. Original editorial content and custom graphics add value to websites, and any effort to steal and spread that intellectual property potentially weakens the original creator’s business value. When those acts are committed by an individual, taking legal action against the at-fault party is straightforward. The widespread use of AI has made it much more difficult to hold perpetrators accountable.
Tips for Preventing AI From Stealing Your Content
Content theft is a worrying topic for anyone whose work depends on creating original content. Fortunately, there are several steps you can take that can make it difficult for scraper bots and other AI tools to steal your content.
Website Terms and Conditions
If your website does not include clear terms and conditions, you may be openly inviting outsiders to poach your original content. You can create or update your website terms to prohibit the stealing of content from your site. There are many free templates available online that you can use to draft your website’s terms and conditions. This step should be used in conjunction with the steps below.
Add Watermarks to Your Images
A watermark is a great way to protect your original images and photos. Watermarks make your content undesirable to anyone who wants to steal your content. If your images are repurposed, they will be attributed to you. This might seem like a small victory, but any step to retain ownership over your content is a win for content creators everywhere. Make sure that the watermark cannot be easily cropped out of the photo or image.
Make Your Content Difficult to Scrape
You can set up your website so your images cannot be saved on other computers. Users often right-click photos to save them, but there are plugins that can disable that access. Your original written content can also be protected by disabling the copy-and-paste function that allows bots and people to quickly copy content.
Protect Content With Anti-Bot Technology
As AI becomes more and more of a threat to content creators, software engineers are creating software solutions that directly block bots and other software programs from stealing your content. There are many forms of web scraping protection software. The programs work autonomously, so you don’t have to worry about managing them yourself.
FAQs
Q: How Can You Protect Your Content From AI?
A: There are many simple and effective ways to protect your content from AI. These include using anti-bot technology, watermarks, and plugins that make copying content from your website difficult. Using several strategies at once can maximize the effectiveness of your efforts. There are also websites you can use to see if other people have stolen your original content.
Q: How Do We Stop AI From Taking Over?
A: Stopping AI from taking over would be immensely difficult. ChatGPT and other AI platforms already have largely full access to anything on the internet. The programs have learned from billions of documents and books. However, individuals can take steps to protect their businesses by using anti-bot technologies. Adding plugins that prevent the copying and pasting of your content and taking simple steps can ensure that your content remains solely on your website or app.
Q: What Type of Content Can AI Copy?
A: Generative AI can take several forms of content from your website. AI can take blog posts, word-for-word quotes, ideas, your style, and marketing results. AI can look at the queries you were targeting for your marketing campaign and target those same individuals with similar content. For the users powering these AI campaigns, the goal is to boost online search rankings. This can help them earn the online ad revenue that you were working for.
Q: Can We Just Turn Off AI?
A: The internet is an open source of information available to anyone, so there is no practical way to “turn off” AI. Federal regulations may one day limit the role and prominence of AI, but business owners are currently left to themselves to defend their original content from being stolen by AI bots and web page crawlers.
Q: Why Is My Content Detected as AI?
A: Online tools for detecting AI do make errors. Many writers are finding that their 100% original content is flagged as AI. If your writing has characteristics of AI, that is one reason that it may be flagged. Simple phrases can lead to false plagiarism flags as well. AI detection tools are imperfect and often unreliable.
Schedule Your Intellectual Property Law Consultation Today
Content theft can be a frustrating reality for people who make original content for a living. The images, photos, and articles people create have value, and there’s an entire field of copyright laws intended to protect intellectual property from being stolen. When theft is perpetrated by a software program, holding the at-fault parties liable becomes very difficult. One way you can prevent the need to pursue litigation is by relying on safeguards like anti-bot technology.
If you need an experienced law firm to represent you, The Myers Law Group focuses on business litigation. We understand and appreciate the value of your original content and can fight to protect your rights. To schedule a consultation, contact our office today.