Facebook Dump Groups & Why They Are So Harmful to Artists

I’ll be honest, I am a little nervous sharing this one outside of my group. I don’t like stirring up drama. I don’t want to put a target on my back. And some of the people out there that run these groups are out for blood when they get called out or they feel like their illegal group is threatened in any way. I am not calling out any specific groups, so I hope I don’t get attacked, but this is real. A lot of new crafters don’t know that what they are involved with is not ok, and how will they ever know if everyone is too scared of internet bullies to tell them? I was asked to make this shareable, and reluctantly, I decided to upload it here.
Link to “Desperately Seeking Designs & Transfers” FB Group: / desperatelyseekingdesigns
And to clarify, because the questions popped up within my group after the Live was over, so I assume they will here too…
How do you know it’s a dump group? It’s very common for it to say it right in the name of the group-SVG Dump, File Dump, etc. It’s also common for words like file share, design share, free svg, free files, etc. Some groups are learning to be more sneaky about it and call themself Sublimation Help & Share, or something more discreet. The definitive way to know if it’s a dump group is if you see hundreds, or even thousands, of designs being shared in posts and albums within the group. No artist/designer gives away that many files away for free. Some might offer a handful of freebies to their members, but even then, they usually do that through their website so they are directing traffic to a place where you will hopefully make a purchase too.
This video was originally recorded as an educational tool for the members of my group. To raise awareness of the problem. Not to guilt or scold anyone. And I hope it is received as such.
❤️ ~ Debbie

[@babyhughie974]

So glad you said this. It's a shame that people are good at selling but not designing will make so much money!!

[@susanschmitz5871]

Please keep making these educational videos! They are good to remind people in the dump groups that this a HUMAN being they are stealing from.

[@missychan63]

What makes me absolutely crazy is people that sell designs with commercial licenses that they don't have the right to sell in the first place. How can they sell a Disney design with the commercial license? They didn't pay the hundreds of thousands of dollars and jump through all of the hoops that Disney requires in order to legally sell those files. Or, they'll get something off of a legitimate design group with a legitimate license and then turn around and sell it when the terms of service from the original website clearly say you can't sell the file. When you mention that in the groups they call you all sorts of names or nasty Nancy and boot you from the group. It's ridiculous! Almost as ridiculous as people trademarking everything they can... Making it next to impossible for legitimate artists to even work anymore. They simply can't make any money because people are either stealing their designs and reselling them, or trademarking things that should never be allowed to be trademarked in the first place. I've been paper crafting for over 30 years and I have every Cricut machine they ever put out - cutting machines I mean - until I got fed up with the software and went to silhouette and never looked back, lol. I've all been given up on the groups and I just do my own thing because too many newbies think they know it all and I'm tired of arguing with them. I'm just trying to keep them safe and I end up being the bad guy.

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

Yes, crafting groups (and Etsy) are being overrun with misinformation, and scammers, who are trying to abuse the system and take advantage of newbies to make a quick buck. Frivolous trademarks are getting out of control. And too many people don’t take the time to read the license terms to know what you can and cannot do with purchased designs. It gets harder every day. But we can’t let them win! I know it’s overwhelming, and scary. But progress is being made. Action is being taken. Groups are getting shut down. Shops are being shut down. Big brands are being brought into the loop, with deep pockets and powerful legal teams. It won’t happen overnight. And really, it won’t ever just all go away. But the more awareness to the problem we can bring, the better chances artists/designers have at actually being successful and continue to offer their work to the world. And how sad of a world would this be without art? 💔 We 👏 can’t 👏 let 👏 them 👏 win!

[@MaryHardymsmary_h]

I purchased a file from pretty little lies, she has a video of how to use the designs where you add other details to make it unique. Honest people will, others will not.

[@MsWickedW]

I did not know that was a thing. I’ve never gotten a free file. I normally purchase my svg files from Etsy. I hope they were from the artist who created them. How can I tell?

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

It can be really hard to tell sometimes on Etsy. Reviews help a lot. The number of sales and rating can help. The biggest red flag I usually tell people to watch for is if the shop is full of copyrighted and trademarked images. Logos, characters, etc. Not fan art, but legit copies of artwork from Disney, NFL, TV shows, etc. That means they are grabbing images off google and selling them. BIG red flag.

[@mainroaddigitalcreations]

Thank you for this❤

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

You’re welcome ❤️

[@craftingwithjean5599]

You are using Integrity, others need to be reminded sometimes of this.

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

Thank you ❤️

[@joannereadman2735]

I love to buy them. i am like a kid in a candy store when i am on etsy haha

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

And we love you for that! Just be a little careful on Etsy too. If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Make sure to read some reviews and make sure they’re legit. Etsy is getting pretty bad too.

[@dollcakegaming]

Hi Debbie. I am a kinda new sub and I wanted to enter the give away but I don't use Facebook. That machine would save me because I'm struggling to make ends meet and have no way to get one because I'm poor. This is not a feel sorry for me but it's true. I really need it, winning it is the only way I will ever get one. Is there any other way for me to enter the give away? Thanks

[@DebbieDoesDesign]

I’m sorry, I wish there was a better response I can give you, but the giveaway has been running with those rules in place already. It would be unfair to everyone else who has entered for me to make exceptions. But we do hope to continue to do these giveaways every 10k members. Maybe I will reconsider that requirement for the next giveaway.