If you are a blogger, social media influencer, streamer or content creator, your livelihood relies on your ability to maintain a positive internet reputation. When a content creator’s online reputation is threatened, their entire brand is at risk.
The constantly evolving nature of the internet comes with a wide variety of legal issues. Our in-depth knowledge of social media platforms and the laws governing the changing landscape of the internet allows us to counsel our clients through a variety of internet content related issues.
Beyond helping with active content issues, KJK’s attorneys can assist bloggers, influencers and content creators in taking the necessary steps to protect your brand from future attacks.
Protecting Your Reputation:
What Types of Online Legal Issues Do Content Creators Face?
Bloggers, influencers, streamers and content creators face a variety of internet issues which can range from content theft to online impersonation. While internet issues are not limited to internet creatives, these issues tend to have a more devastating impact on content creators because of the extremely public nature of their careers.
KJK’s team of internet defamation and content removal attorneys help bloggers, influencers, streamers and content creators defend and protect their reputations from brutal internet attacks while maintaining on-brand messaging through the court of public opinion. We regularly assist clients with the following types of internet issues:
Trademark Infringement, Copyright infringement, DMCA Takedown Notices
Original content creators are targets for content theft. This can look like someone using your brand’s images or logo without your consent. If your original content is being utilized by people or brands without your permission, you have options to secure their removal. Our team can help you assess your options for the removal of your stollen creative content.
Misappropriation of Name, Image and Likeness and The Right of Publicity
Because influencers, bloggers, streamers and content creators have strong purchasing influence, they are at risk of having their image exploited. This exploitation can include a situation where a brand uses an influencer’s name, likeness or personal attribute to promote a product. While application of these legal claims are state specific, people have a right to protect their public image.
Doxxing
All people, even people who publicly conduct business on the internet, have privacy rights. Generally, people have a right to keep intimate details about their life private. Doxxing (also spelled ‘doxing’) is a modern phenomenon whereby intimate details about another person are released and published to the internet for the purpose of harming that person. While doxxing is not necessarily illegal, it can give rise to privacy torts such as publication of private facts or invasion of privacy. Even if the doxxing occurring does not give rise to legal claims, you still have options to make it stop. If you are being doxxed by an internet user leaking your private information on the internet, an internet defamation and content removal attorney can help.
Negative Internet Content
Negative internet content can be removed even if it is true. Generally, content can be removed through legal or non-legal means. This can be achieved by reaching out to a specific website or social platform about terms and condition violations, by sending a cease-and-desist letter, by sending a DMCA takedown request or by securing court ordered removal.
Online Defamation
One of the most popular internet issues that bloggers, influencers, streamers and content creators face is internet defamation. Internet defamation occurs when a person publishes a damaging and false statement of fact about another person on the internet. While online defamation can sometimes be removed through non-legal means, often the only way to remove online defamation is by receiving a court order from a court mandating removal of the content. In order to receive a court order from a court, you will have to file a defamation lawsuit.
Cancel Culture
Internet entrepreneurs are often the victims of cancel culture. Cancel culture is a “mob mentality” related to the internet where [a group of people posts negative commentary about another to bring awareness to an issue]. Cancel culture can include the spreading of true statements, false statements or taking a situation out of context. When a content creator is canceled, they risk losing the business that they worked so hard to build. They additionally face the very real potential of not being able to secure employment through other means. If you are the victim of cancel culture, an attorney can help you remove content and shift your narrative.
Harassment by Anonymous People
Often, online attacks are perpetrated by anonymous online actors utilizing pseudonyms to hide their identifies. Anonymous online actors can be identified and held responsible for their internet actions through cyber-investigation. Cyber-investigation includes a series of multi-faceted research techniques that can be utilized to identify an anonymous person through their social footprint. Anonymous online actors can often be identified through tailored Google searches, reverse image searching and other online techniques. If cyber-investigation techniques fail, then you might only be able to identify the anonymous person through a John Doe lawsuit.
A John Doe lawsuit is a lawsuit filed against an anonymous person whereby the plaintiff intends to identify the anonymous person through court ordered discovery. This can include subpoenaing social media profiles, websites and hosting providers for the Internet Protocol (IP) addresses related to the anonymous person. Once a plaintiff identifies the IP addresses of the anonymous person, they will then be able to subpoena the internet service providers related to that IP address for subscriber information to make an identity. Once an anonymous person is identified, they can be held accountable for their online actions. An anonymous person can be a neighbor, a competitor or a stranger. Often, identifying the anonymous person will provide additional legal claims that can be added to your complaint.
Don’t Wait until it’s too late:
You Need Quick, Strategic Action for Social Media Issues
While the importance of acting quickly cannot be understated, it is equally important that content creators be strategic in internet removal efforts. A hasty attempt at damage control can aggravate a bad problem into a worse problem. Often, the best strategy involves a hybrid of legal action and public messaging. An internet defamation and content removal attorney can help content creators weigh their strategic options and select a content removal strategy while maintaining brand messaging.
Helpful information:
How Can I protect My Brand from Future Attacks?
It is important for bloggers, social media influencers, streamers and content creators to protect their brands from future attacks. In addition to tackling current issues related to the internet, KJK can assist in brand establishment and protection, including:
- Entity Formation
- Business Registration
- Contract Negotiation and Review
- FTC Social Media Endorsement Compliance
Get in Touch
Talk With A Content Removal Attorney Today
Content creators often make the mistake of ignoring internet issues until it is too late. But ignoring internet issues has the potential to destroy your entire business. One seemingly small internet issue can quickly spread, be taken out of context, become a news story and go viral.
Team Spotlight:
Ali Arko
In her role leading KJK’s Internet Defamation and Content Removal group, Ali focuses on reputation management through the removal of defamatory, fake and negative internet content. She is an experienced litigator with an entrepreneurial spirit, utilizing her marketing and communications background to help her clients – from individuals, celebrities and influencers to companies and executives – manage and protect their online reputations. Ali curates sophisticated content removal strategies and has experience negotiating and removing harmful and sensitive content from social media websites and many other highly trafficked and “shaming” websites.
Additional Information:
Frequently Asked Questions from Bloggers, Influencers and Content Creators
The negative internet content about me is true. Can it still be removed?
Yes. Content does not have to be defamatory to be removed from the internet.
What platforms have you removed content from?
We have worked with content creators and influencers on social media platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Twitter and Instagram to tackle damaging internet problems and repair damaged reputations. We have also removed content from forum sites and gossip forums like Reddit and Lipstick Alley.
The person targeting me is doing so anonymously. Can I still pursue legal action?
Yes. Anonymous people can be traced through a combination of cyber-investigation techniques and through the filing of a John Doe Lawsuit.
Can KJK help me protect my brand before I am attacked?
Yes. KJK is a full-service law firm. In addition to assisting with negative internet content, we can assist with intellectual property issues, entity formation, compliance and contract review.