Well, I am finally sitting down long enough to write out what happened with my blog. First off let me say...how I hate being private! I have only accepted people I personally know (with a few exceptions of twin mamas that I feel a special bond with) and I have had to turn away lots friends cause I just don't have enough room. I have had to cut strings with so many people just because when I started making my 100 list, if I didn't know them personally...I didn't add them! However, there are so many people whom left comments and really gave me lots of input, but I just didn't feel safe including them since I don't 'know' them! With that being said, this past week or two...I feel like no one even reads my blog anymore! I have been getting very few comments...I don't know...maybe this whole private thing just has me in a funk?? I just hate the whole situation! Why must they put a limit of 100 readers?? Why did someone do this crap in the first place?? I don't get it, but anyways. I just keep telling myself the main reason I blog in the first place is for Cooper & Hadley!
A few weeks ago, I received a few emails from random people that I have never been in contact with stating that they believe someone had stolen my pictures off my blog and was using them as their own family...they included several Facebook accounts to prove it! As I clicked on the links, my heart began to sink deeper & deeper...pictures of me, my hubby, my kids, my nieces! I felt so sick & so angry at the same time. Simultaneously, my sister was receiving similar emails since her daughters were in some pics. I was in the process of reporting it to Facebook and my sister was in the process of emailing this sicko doing this crap! Before I even finished the report, all the FB pages were gone...deleted...vanished! I was glad they were gone, but wish I could have finished reporting the sicko! No telling how long this had been going on and I am so thankful to the girls who emailed us letting us know about the situation! I was very curious on how they discovered this and had to really push to get some answers. I finally got the whole story...supposedly one of their adopted twins had some kind of digestive disease. They joined a support forum of parents who have children with this disease and one of the girls in the group recognized my pictures and started investigating this person. They soon realized this person was fake & that's when they contacted me!!! UUUGGGHHH!!!
So to any of you out there who are still public, please beware of the sick people in this world who have nothing better to do in life than to mess up other peoples lives!! Obviously, watermarking my pictures was useless!!! Please take all precautions immediately!!!
17 comments:
Sorry you are in a blog funk! I can't believe what all happened to you and your family. I hardly ever leave comments on blogs, but I don't want you to be sad that you are not getting very many so I will try to comment often. Thanks for letting me be in your 100 readers. I have not gone private yet, but I am thinking about it. Hope you guys are having a fun summer!!
I'm so sorry that all of this happened to you guys and that you are having to deal with the consequences. I hope that the person who did this is prevented from doing it again in the future. Thank you though for continuing your blog, even though you had to go private. I love reading it every day to catch up with you guys!
It is sad that because of some sick people out there, you had to go private. Thank you so much for allowing me to follow your blog! I don't comment a lot, but I do so enjoy visiting your blog daily. Your little ones are growing up fast.
Wow- I just don't understand people. That is nuts! Lots of blog love coming to you from my computer!
That's soooo crazy. Seriously, I just don't understand why people feel the need to even do that! Thank you for sharing your story, I was so curious!! And also, thanks for lettin' this fellow 'twin mama' be a part of your 100!! :) I love reading your blog, I don't comment too too much, but I will more, just to let you know I'm still here!!! :)
MK,
I know that you are sad that everyone can't read your blog. People probably loved reading it. Also know that there are people reading that don't leave comments. I'm sorry that this happened to your family and I'm glad that you can take these precautions. It is really about protecting your family and C&H having something that details their lives. I'm glad that I get to read and follow along everyday. I really wished we lived closer. Take care and tell Michael hello.
Mary Kate,
Wow! That is crazy! Your post about blog security from last summer was the reason that I started watermarking my pics in the first place! Thanks for sharing the whole story- this whole incident certainly has me thinking about what I post and who is reading it. I am so happy to be an invited reader and I am so sorry that you've had to deal with crazy people. Cooper and Hadley are so adorable! Just think of how much they will love being able to look back at your blog and see how their childhood was so wonderfully captured and preserved for them! Thanks for sharing your life with us!
This blog post reminded me that I have yet to go PRIVATE and I need to, but really do not want to.
We have been so busy that I have not had time to do it, that is no excuse. I just keep praying that I can find another way...truth it I need to do it.
I love your blog and am so glad I was able to remain a reader. I love your style and the fact that you just share the sweetness of your family with us. It is so obvious to me in each post that you blog for the right reasons, I could go on about this but I will just say...you are one of my favorite bloggers.
That is so insane!! See, I am so worried about my pictures now too. :( Brandon said there really is no way to completely protect them because if someone really knows what they are doing, then they will get them. I'm so sorry that you went through this. I don't understand the 100 cap that blogger does either. That's silly!! I felt the same way when I was private. A lot of our family didn't even have google accounts and didn't want to sign up for them, so that is why I went public again, because so many of our family members couldn't access it. Ugh!! Why are there people in the world that do things like this?!?! Again, I'm so sorry you guys had to go through this. :(
Well thank you for choosing me to be one of your followers!!! :)
Oh Mary Kate, this just makes my stomach hurt! I absolutely hate that this happened to you. Isn't it so sad that you started your blog to share with family and friends, and this is what happens?
I am so, so sorry and I feel thankful and lucky that you invited me to follow your blog! I just love checking in on C&H so much, especially since they are about the same age as Addison. I really cannot believe how much they have grown recently! I swear they are both a head taller than Addi and Miss Hadley's hair has gotten so long! We still don't have enough to do a pony tail! Oh well, her day will come!
Oh, I am so sorry to hear this! You really don't think something as innocent as a blog could cause something like this to happen, since your blog was so innocent in nature. Sharing your story shouldn't be like this!!! I'm so sorry! I'm private too, for reasons such as this. You just never know what the next freak will do, and when it comes to your kiddos, you have to do everything you can to protect them. This is so invading and I'm so sorry your family has gone thru this. I do feel privilaged to be a part of your family's blog - thank you!!
Thank you for allowing us to read your blog daily and keeping up with you and the family.
Love
The Locke Family
I am in the same funk! I still have my favorite followers, but I am so sad that since going private, I have lost a few and will not gain any new ones. I just have to keep reminding myself that I am doing this blog to capture the memories of our lives for my sweet wee ones and not for entertainment for strangers. It is still so hard though because I love to share my life and journey with other people.
Thank you for allowing me to follow your motherhood journey. Like i said before, y our sweet babies bring such a smile to my face!
First, thanks for including me in the 100! I read your blog daily, and I love looking at the adorable pictures of your cuties.
I will never understand the reasons people do things like what happened to you. I am just glad you were able to protect your family.
Yes, thanks for letting me make the cut! I am so out of the loop on blogging and reading blogs with our big move that I just saw this post and caught up. I PRAY that some wacko doesn't have my pictures out there somewhere, but that's the thing, how would I even know? Ugh! Sorry you had to go private and deal with this!
Mary Kate:
So sorry to hear about your blogging problems and sorry you had to make it so private. There really are some sickos out there. I don't blog myself but enjoying reading your blog and several of my other friends, thanks for including in your "100" and sorry you couldn't include more people. You have two adorable kiddos and I LOVE the pictures you have of them! :) Thanks again. Take care.
Sara (Davies) Wistrom
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