Photo Thieves

Any questions, comments, or problems, please email me.

2/6/2010 - It has been brought to my attention that there are a few unscrupulous websites out there blatantly stealing photos from Prime Portal and other sites then posting them on their own site as if they own them - no credit is given to the actual owner/photographer.

Remember, the people who share these photos on Prime Portal and on other legitimate sites spend their own money and time taking them and do this out of their own kindness.  Some do it for recognition, others to help those who enjoy these photos.  Regardless, they are the legitimate owners of the photos.

Here is a perfect example of what I am talking about.  Yuri Pasholok has sent in 169 different walk arounds consisting of thousands of photos.  Today, he was rewarded for his kindness by finding a site that has stolen many of the photos:

This is not right and needs to be stopped.  Prime Portal was established to help military enthusiasts and modelers access valuable reference materials for free.  If this kind of theft continues, donors are going to start thinking twice about sending in new materials.  There have been a couple times where people have tried passing off other's photos as their own on Prime Portal.  Some I have caught, some got through.  But when they did get through, I removed them as soon as I was notified.  I refuse to be party to a theft.  The photos on Prime Portal are for private use.  Any other usage requires the owners permission.

This is not the first time it has happened and it probably will not be the last.  If you find a site trying to pass off donated photos as their own, contact them.  Tell them to stop stealing photos.