Someone Stole My Work: What to Do in the First 24 Hours

You just found your work being used without your authorization. The next 24 hours matter more than the following 24 weeks. What you do (and don’t do) right now shapes how quickly the case resolves, how much it costs you, and how much you can recover.

Here’s the checklist that working creators use. Five steps in the first hour, five more in the first day, and a clear list of things not to do.

The first hour

1. Don’t react publicly

The most common mistake: posting about the theft on social media within minutes of discovery. This feels cathartic. It almost always works against you.

Why this hurts:

It alerts the infringer to come delete their listing before you’ve documented it
It may expose you to defamation claims if you name the infringer before you’ve verified
It can compromise the credibility of your evidence if the post appears emotional rather than factual
It can complicate later settlement (the infringer is now publicly committed to defending themselves)

Wait. Document first, react later.

2. Take comprehensive screenshots immediately

Before doing anything else, capture the evidence in case it disappears.

For each infringing location:

Screenshot the full page with URL visible in the address bar
Screenshot the infringer’s profile or shop page
Screenshot any related listings or content from the same source
Screenshot timestamps, view counts, prices, and any metadata visible
Save the URL in a document along with the date and time of your discovery

For digital content that might be deleted, consider using a service like archive.org’s “Save Page Now” or web.archive.org to create an independent permanent record. This is especially important for social media posts that can be deleted quickly.

For physical or print infringement (a counterfeit product, a book reprint, a magazine using your photo), photograph the actual item, the receipt or proof of purchase, and any packaging or labeling.

3. Locate your registration evidence

Pull together everything that proves your authorship:

Your registration certificate or verification URL
Date of original creation
Date of original publication
Any prior client communications about the work
The original files in their highest-resolution form

If you registered with an online service, copy the verification URL into your evidence document. This is what you’ll cite in takedown notices.

If you don’t have a registration, gather whatever Tier 2 evidence you can: emails, social media posts, cloud storage timestamps. We covered this in what counts as evidence.

4. Verify it’s actually unauthorized

Before escalating, confirm three things:

Did you ever license this use? Check your records. Sometimes creators forget about a license they granted years ago. If you can’t remember, you likely didn’t grant one.

Could this be fair use? A small portion used for commentary, criticism, or parody might be fair use. A full reproduction of your work for commercial purposes almost certainly isn’t.

Could this be independent creation? Independent creation isn’t infringement. If two creators arrive at very similar work through entirely separate paths, neither is infringing. Look for signs of actual copying versus parallel coincidence.

If all three answers point to clear infringement, proceed. If any of them are murky, get a quick lawyer consultation before escalating.

5. Identify the infringer

Determine who you’re dealing with:

A specific named person or business?
An anonymous account or shop?
A large company?
An automated service or AI tool?

This affects your enforcement options. An anonymous Etsy account warrants a platform takedown. A named direct competitor warrants a cease and desist. A large company may need lawyer involvement.

Hours 2 through 24

6. File the platform takedown if applicable

If the infringement is on a major platform, file the IP report immediately. The earlier you file, the less revenue the infringer captures and the smaller their dispute leverage.

Use the platform’s specific form:

Amazon: amazon.com/report-infringement
Etsy: etsy.com/legal/help/article/482927055123
YouTube: support.google.com/youtube/answer/2807622
Meta: help.instagram.com/contact/372592039493026
TikTok: tiktok.com/legal/copyright-policy

Include your registration verification URL in the report. The IP team uses this to make decisions fast.

For the full DMCA notice template and walkthrough, see our dedicated guide.

7. Document everything in a single dossier

Create a single document that contains:

Date and time of your discovery
All screenshots with file names referencing what they show
The infringer’s identifying information
Your registration and authorship evidence
All correspondence about the work
A timeline of events

This dossier becomes the foundation for everything that follows. If you later need to hire a lawyer, give them the dossier and they’re up to speed in 30 minutes. If you go to small claims or litigation, the dossier is the spine of your case.

8. Consider direct contact

For identifiable infringers, sometimes a direct, professional email resolves things faster than any formal procedure. Send a short, factual message:

Hi [name],

I noticed you're using my [work type] at [URL] without authorization.
I'm the original creator (registered as [reference]).

Please remove the unauthorized use within 48 hours. I'd rather resolve
this directly than go through formal procedures.

If you believe you have a license or there's been a misunderstanding,
let me know.

[Your name]

About 20-30% of cases resolve at this step. The infringer realizes they’re caught, sometimes apologizes, and removes the use. This is the cheapest possible resolution.

When NOT to do this:

When the infringement is large-scale or clearly intentional
When the infringer is a sophisticated commercial operation
When you want to preserve maximum legal options
When the direct contact might give them time to delete evidence before you can document it (capture screenshots FIRST)

9. Notify any business partners affected

If the infringement affects clients, distributors, or business partners:

Email them with what you’ve found
Reassure them you’re handling it
Provide your registration evidence so they can verify

This prevents the infringer from spreading the dispute to your partners and making the business situation more complex than the legal one needs to be.

10. Set a deadline for yourself

Decide what you’ll do if no resolution happens within 7, 14, and 30 days. Having a clear escalation path keeps you from drifting into months of inaction.

A typical decision tree:

7 days, no platform action: Resubmit with stronger evidence
14 days, still no resolution: Send a formal C&D
30 days, still nothing: Consult a lawyer about next steps

What NOT to do

Things that working creators learn the hard way:

Don’t confront the infringer publicly

Posting about them, tagging them in angry comments, telling their followers what they did. Feels good. Backfires.

Specific risks:

Defamation claims if any of your accusations are imprecise
The infringer’s followers may rally to their defense
It can prompt the infringer to delete evidence
It can compromise your credibility as a fair-dealing complainant
It can make settlement harder

Save the public account for after the case is resolved, if at all.

Don’t engage emotionally with their response

When the infringer responds (especially defensively or aggressively), don’t reply in kind. Stay factual. Document everything. If they get heated, that’s their problem; your evidence speaks for itself.

Don’t make threats you can’t back up

“I’m going to sue you for everything you own” works only if you’re actually prepared to file suit. Vague maximum-damages threats from individuals who have never litigated are easy to ignore.

Don’t promise things you can’t deliver

If you settle with the infringer in exchange for them removing the use, don’t promise public retractions or NDAs unless you’ll actually deliver them. A broken settlement creates worse problems than the original infringement.

Don’t ignore the case

Inaction is itself a choice. If you let infringement run for months without acting, you may compromise your ability to seek some remedies (especially statutory damages for unregistered works, where some jurisdictions consider laches arguments).

Don’t go full nuclear immediately

Filing a lawsuit before sending any other communications can backfire. Courts often look at whether the plaintiff tried to resolve before escalating. The DMCA notice + C&D + lawsuit sequence is the standard for a reason.

Realistic timelines

For working creators handling typical cases:

Platform takedowns: 24 hours to 14 days to resolution Direct C&D resolutions: 7-30 days for clear cases Lawyer-sent C&D: 14-60 days Small claims (where available): 60-120 days Federal court litigation: 12-24 months minimum

The vast majority of disputes resolve in the first two categories. Litigation is rare and expensive.

When to lawyer up

You probably need a lawyer when:

The commercial value exceeds $10,000
The infringer is a substantial company
You’ve already sent a C&D with no response
You want to file in federal court for statutory damages
The case involves complex jurisdictional issues
The other side has lawyered up

For most cases below that threshold, the procedures above handle it. The cost of a lawyer ($300-$1,000+ for an initial consultation, more for ongoing representation) often exceeds the recovery from individual infringements.

The honest emotional reality

Discovering copyright theft is upsetting. The work you put time into is being taken. The temptation is to react fast and visibly.

The creators who handle this well don’t suppress that emotion; they channel it into documentation. The two hours you spend gathering screenshots and evidence are the two hours that matter most. Everything that follows depends on what you captured before the infringer realized you were watching.

After that, take a breath. Most cases resolve quickly with calm, factual procedures. The cases that don’t resolve quickly tend to resolve worse for the side that overreacted.

Tomorrow morning, file the platform takedown with all your documentation ready. The infringement is usually gone within the week. The case becomes a footnote rather than a story.

Someone Stole My Work — What Should I Do in the First 24 Hours?