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How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

rickstratton.com

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Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#61

Post by gojomo »

How do I prove that I have no control over this thing?

You don't have to prove anything. You've given them the courtesy of letting them know they have the wrong person, that's it. You can't 'cease' or 'desist' from something you're not doing, any more than you are already not doing it.

If they actually sue you after you've let them know you're not the right person, then you can invest more effort into this... and at that point, they'll be the reckless ones for filing a lawsuit on no evidence.

In the meantime, the most you should do -- milk it for some hits via a blog post -- is all you need to do. You've done it.

Consult with lawyers (off the payment clock, free initial consultations) if you'd like to, but there's no need given that Perkins Coie has just sent you a bit of lawyerly puffery in error.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#62

Post by floydprice »

chrischen wrote: post #46
OoTheNigerian wrote: post #44

The only question that come to mind is this. How did they know your address?

Well they are Facebook... And he is on Facebook...

hang on! are you suggesting that FaceBook employees have access to a users data even if his privacy settings prohibit it?

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#63

Post by sgdesign »

endlessvoid94 wrote: post #60

Oh, come the fuck on. Somebody, somewhere, made a mistake. If you really have nothing to do with this, then nothing will come of it. Reply to them and tell them it isn't even you, and that you have nothing to do with this. They're not going to destroy you or even force you to rack up thousands of dollars in legal fees. They're not evil. This is just as bad as the mainstream media -- anything that anybody does that ca…

What could Facebook (or Facebook's lawyers) possibly have to gain from this? I also think once they realize their mistake they'll drop the whole thing.

Maybe they sent you the C&D just as a shot in the dark, because they don't know who the real author of this thing is?

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#64

Post by chrischen »

floydprice wrote: post #62
chrischen wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well they are Facebook... And he is on Facebook...

hang on! are you suggesting that FaceBook employees have access to a users data even if his privacy settings prohibit it?

Maybe one of those facebook lawyers friended him.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#66

Post by RyanMcGreal »

coopdog wrote: post #48
zrgiu_ wrote: post #22

So, guilty until proven innocent, is this how things work now ? What if I go now on facebook, create an account, use the name Rick Stratton and start posting random, "incriminating" stuff all over the internet, what then ?

Innocent until proven guilty is only for criminal court, civil law is done on the balance of probabilities Les disclaimer: IANALTINLA

> TINLA

I had to look this one up. This Is Not Legal Advice.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#67

Post by racerrick »

endlessvoid94 wrote: post #60

Oh, come the fuck on. Somebody, somewhere, made a mistake. If you really have nothing to do with this, then nothing will come of it. Reply to them and tell them it isn't even you, and that you have nothing to do with this. They're not going to destroy you or even force you to rack up thousands of dollars in legal fees. They're not evil. This is just as bad as the mainstream media -- anything that anybody does that ca…

That's exactly what I thought, too. And that's when I got the "you sound guilty" from their lawyer.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#68

Post by Tyrannosaurs »

Tichy wrote: post #58
iamgilesbowkett wrote: post #40

hey @racerrick, my mom's a retired lawyer. (for context.) lawyers issue threats the way other people say hello. if this person says to you on the phone that you have to prove that you don't own the site, guess what? you can't prove she said it, since it isn't in writing, and it's not against the law to lie about that in the first place. you need a sharp lawyer who won't rip you off. hire one. free advice is worth eve…

Is it even necessary to reply at all? I find it quite outrageous that random strangers could tap into my time like that. Or if a reply is necessary, could I charge for it? (I am not the original poster, just hypothetically speaking if something like that happened to me).

So long as your reply is short, balanced and factual then a reply is better than not replying. If nothing else it's extending the courtesy that we'd all want extended to us if we were making a complaint (saying, sorry, no, you've made a mistake), but also you're kidding yourself if you think these things go away when you ignore them. Reality is that it's more likely that they'll escalate.

In terms of could you charge for it, no of course not, sadly that's not how any of this works. You can throw out this sort of threat with little or no comeback.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#69

Post by racerrick »

daemon13 wrote: post #59

I your place I would avoid going the legal route since this is not your strength. 1. Pay close attention to comments from daegloe > EDIT: After reading many of the frothy comments on this page, I just wanted to add that it's generally best to avoid threatening a lawsuit, countersuit or any kind of legal claim in your response. These giant law firms love to call people on their bluffs, because they bill by the hour. A…

Good advice.

Re: How my comment on TechCrunch got me a Facebook Cease and Desist

#70

Post by ja27 »

iamgilesbowkett wrote: post #40

hey @racerrick, my mom's a retired lawyer. (for context.) lawyers issue threats the way other people say hello. if this person says to you on the phone that you have to prove that you don't own the site, guess what? you can't prove she said it, since it isn't in writing, and it's not against the law to lie about that in the first place. you need a sharp lawyer who won't rip you off. hire one. free advice is worth eve…

Not a lawyer either, but I've responded to C&D letters myself. Just write the bare minimum and make it clear that you are either complying with their demands or that you are unable to because they have incorrect facts. I've never even had a response to my response letter.
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