Report a copied pattern

Overview

• Check whether your rights are infringed
• Secure evidence
• Report the copy
• Optional: write to the seller directly
• Legal help
• What you can realistically expect
• Help & contact
• Sources

If your pattern, a photo or your text shows up somewhere without your permission, first secure evidence, then report the copy where it is posted. Whether it is removed is up to that platform. This page applies to all authors of knitting, crochet, sewing and other patterns.

Important

• If you created the pattern, photos and texts yourself, you hold the copyright, not Crazypatterns. Which rights of use Crazypatterns receives is set out in the author terms.
• Against copies outside Crazypatterns you act yourself or through a lawyer. Crazypatterns cannot do this for you.
• This page is not legal advice but a general overview (as of November 2026). What applies in your case depends on the country; a lawyer can clarify it.
• Stay factual and do not name suspected infringers publicly, for example in forums or on social media. An unjustified accusation can have legal consequences for you.

1. Check whether your rights are infringed

You do not need to register anything for copyright. Protection may cover:

• your pattern text; plain stitch sequences and standard phrases are not always enough,
• charts and sewing diagrams you designed yourself,
• your photos; whether simple product photos are protected depends on the country,
• in some cases the design itself, if it is original.

Whether you offer something for free or for money makes no difference to its protection.

Ideas, techniques and basic shapes are not protected by copyright, for example a crocheted bunny, a raglan sweater or a stitch.

Small changes do not turn a copy into a new work. Copying parts can also be an unauthorized copy.

Typical cases:

• The PDF file is shared in groups or on document sites.
• The pattern is copied and sold on marketplaces without your permission, also in print or translated.
• Your photos and texts appear in other shops.
• Fake shops copy entire product pages.

2. Secure evidence

1. Copy the exact address (URL) of every place where the copy appears. Platforms need the exact URL, not just the home page.
2. Take screenshots that show the address, the date and the content.
3. Optional: Also save the page in the Wayback Machine web archive.
4. Have your originals ready: the pattern as a dated file, full-size photos, drafts.

Do not buy anything from suspicious shops, not even as a test. Fake shops often take the money and deliver nothing.

3. Report the copy

Report on Crazypatterns

1. Open the Report illegal content form. You do not need an account.
2. Enter the exact address of the content and explain what is yours, with a link to your original.
3. Enter your email address. Only then can Crazypatterns confirm receipt and tell you the decision.
4. Confirm the statement and click "Send report".

On the product page, Report also takes you to the report.

Report on another platform

Use the platform's form for copyright or intellectual property. These forms usually accept reports only from rights holders or their authorized representatives.

Every report should include:

• the exact address (URL) of the copy,
• an explanation of what is yours, with a link to your original,
• your name and email address,
• a statement that your information is accurate and complete to the best of your knowledge.

Platforms that follow US law (DMCA) often also ask for a postal address, a phone number, a signature and a statement under penalty of perjury. In that case, fill in all required fields of the form.

Fake shops and search results

1. Report fraudulent sites to Google Safe Browsing.
2. Have copies removed from Google Search: Google: report content for legal reasons. This only removes the result on Google; the page itself stays online.

If the same page appears under a new address, you need to report the new address again.

4. Optional: write to the seller directly

With private individuals and identifiable sellers, a short, factual message can be enough. Say what is yours (with a link to the original), what should be removed and by when.

Do not write to fake shops or anonymous sellers; report them directly. Only ask for money after getting legal advice.

5. Legal help

• A copyright lawyer can demand that the other side stop the infringement and, if necessary, go to court, including in urgent proceedings.
• For urgent proceedings you need to act quickly. Deadlines, costs and procedure depend on the country.
• An unjustified or faulty demand can cost you money. Get advice before you send one.
• Legal action against sellers abroad is often expensive and uncertain. There, reporting to the platform is usually the more practical way.

6. What you can realistically expect

• Whether and how fast a platform responds varies a lot. Success is not guaranteed.
• Copies often reappear under a new name or address.
• On platforms that follow US law (DMCA), the other side can file a formal counter-notice; the copy can then reappear. In that case, get legal advice right away.
• Fake shops based abroad are often hard to remove.
• Reporting is most worthwhile for visible offers, for example on marketplaces and in search results, because buyers find the copy there.

7. Help & contact

• Reporting on Crazypatterns: the Report illegal content form.
• Questions about the form or your account: Contact Support.
• Legal questions such as cease-and-desist letters, lawsuits or cases abroad: contact a copyright lawyer.

8. Sources

• Berne Convention, Art. 5: protection without formalities
• Directive 2001/29/EC (copyright in the information society), Art. 2: reproduction in whole or in part
• Directive 2006/116/EC (term of protection), Art. 6: protection of photographs
• CJEU, case C-683/17 (Cofemel): copyright in designs and models
• Directive 2004/48/EC (enforcement): injunctions, provisional measures, damages
• Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 (Digital Services Act), Art. 16: notice and action mechanisms
• 17 U.S.C. § 512 (US copyright law, DMCA): notices and counter-notices on US platforms
• Author terms, section 5.1: Crazypatterns' right of use