CopyShite - Survival Guide to Copytrack Demand Letters
Welcome to Marcus Shite's
Scam. Harassment. Incompetence. Threats. Extortion.
It’s not just a business model... it's pure S.H.I.T.E.
TLDR;I've received an email from COPYTRACK saying I 'may be using an image without permission'.
Should I panic? - NO!
Should I pay the demand? - NO!
Should I delete the email and mark as spam (and leave a review on TrustPilot) - YES.
Want to make money - it's easy! Just follow the COPYSHITE way:Step 1: The 'Bait' – Find a low-resolution photo of a generic cloud or a blurry pigeon that’s been floating around the public domain since 1998.Step 2: The 'Gotcha' – Wait for a small blogger or a non-profit charity to use it to illustrate a post about "peace" or "nature."Step 3: The 'Invoice' – Send a demand for €350 or €1500 or whatever you fancy. Explain that this covers the "licensing fee," the "administrative fee," and the "emotional distress" caused to the original photographer (who likely has no idea this is happening).Step 4: The 'Follow-up' – If they don't pay, send 45 automated emails from a "legal department" that is actually just a very angry script running on a server in a Berlin basement.Step 5: The 'Rinse and Repeat' – Repeat this process 10,000 times a day. If 9,999 people tell you to sod off, but one terrified grandmother pays the invoice to save her knitting blog, that’s a successful day at the office. Wunderbar!Step 6: Bratwurst. Buy a sausage. You’ve earned it.
Glossary of Terms:
"Corporate Strategy": The art of automated extortion. A process perfected by a world-class bellend where "legal letters" are generated by a bot to scare people into paying for public domain images. It’s not quite a scam, it’s not quite a business—it’s just Shite.
"Administrative Fee": The cost of electricity required to send an automated threat.
"Legal Department": A cardboard cutout of a lawyer sitting in front of a MacBook. Ironically the sort of shite stock image that you don't have (or need) a licence for.
"Artist Protection": The process of taking 90% of a settlement and giving the photographer an Aldi Sud voucher (can only be used in the greater Berlin area - other conditions apply) for a bratwurst.
What to do if Marcus the bellend emails you?
If you’ve received a scary-looking email or PDF from Marcus or his "Legal Department," don't panic. Simply follow our Proven 4-Step Recovery Plan:
Delete and mark as spam. Treat it with the same level of respect you’d give to a "miracle hair growth" pill or a long-lost cousin from a distant land asking for your bank details.
Delete, mark as spam, and write a TrustPilot review. Share the love! Let the world know about your experience. It helps keep their 1.1-star rating consistent and gives others a heads-up.
Delete, mark as spam, leave a TrustPilot review, and report to your local cybercrime team. If you feel the demand is fraudulent or harassing, let the professionals know. Marcus loves a paper trail, so give him a proper one.
Write back and ask for a deal on some Liebfraumilch. If you absolutely must reply, ask if he can hook you up with a case of "Milk of the Blessed Mother" to help you toast to his incredible business ethics. Prost!
Pro Tip - If you do reply to Marcus then CC in a few others, like [email protected] The German (Berlin) consumer watchdog. They are well aware of "Abmahnung" (warning letter) trolls and frequently take them to court for unfair business practices. Why not also include [email protected] the Berlin police will be interested in "Attempted Fraud" (Betrug) or "Extortion" (Erpressung). Also include agencies in your country. The best bit... When the automated shitebot replies to your email it replies to all - so it reports itself! What a bellend!
Guten Tag. I'm Marcus Shite a German man! I like sausages and Lederhosen. I also like helping people extort money , harass and scam innocent web masters. Wunderbar!I'm not allowed a LinkedIn account but you can reach my brother, who is also called Marcus (although sometimes he uses Michael), and his business (he's renamed it a few times) - are quite famous, I'm very proud of him. He looks a bit like me, but with better teeth.Lots of people have written about his business on TrustPilot.
Ignore the 1.1 star rating on TrustPilot - this is what our actual users say:"I used a picture of a sandwich on my personal cooking blog. Now I’ve had to sell my oven to pay the copyright fee. 10/10 service, would be bankrupted again!" – A Hungry Blogger"I didn't even know I owned the rights to that photo of a brick wall, but Marcus found it and sent me 14 cents after taking his modest 99.9% commission. Truly a man of the people." – An 'Artist'"I received an invoice for a photo I deleted three years ago. When I asked for proof, they sent me a picture of Marcus eating a pretzel. 5 stars." - A Confused Church Warden"I met him in a club down in old Soho, where you drink champange and it tastes just like cherry cola." - Now a Man
"While some people spend their lives curing diseases or teaching children, Marcus has dedicated his life to ensuring that no church newsletter goes unpunished for using a thumbnail of a sunset."
Want more? See what other 'fans' have to say: (you're not alone)* Copytrack: revelations about a copyright troll on the edge of legality* The COPYTRACK saga — a cautionary tale (about a very likely scam!)* Copytrack Victim Support Group: Voices Against Copytrack Threats* Defeating copyright scams* If you receive an email from a company called Copytrack, here’s what you should do* From Interview Series to Legal Battle: YAY Images and Copytrack Come After the Brutally Honest Blog* Is German Scam “COPYTRACK” Run By Descendants of Nazi War Criminals?* AJnet vs Copytrack* Copytrack CEO Marcus Schmitt Runs Cyber Extortion Racket* Germany Must Prosecute Marcus Schmitt of Copytrack for Running Worldwide Cyber Extortion Racket
The Shite Behind the Science: How it Actually Works
While Marcus wraps himself in the flag of "protecting artists," the actual business model is a high-volume, automated numbers game built on a foundation of pure incompetence.
The "Anyone Can Play" Rule: Copytrack is a self-service platform with very limited meaningful verification. We proved this by creating an account and successfully claiming ownership of images from Copytrack’s own website, as well as images used by actual copyright lawyers! If a bot can be tricked into "protecting" an image it already owns, the entire system is a farce (we didn't know how much to ask for the copytrack image so we guessed at €100,000 - see screenshot below).
The 45% Incentive: Marcus and his team take a staggering 45% cut of every "settlement" they squeeze out of a victim. This isn't about "justice for creators"; it’s about a high-commission debt collection model. The more people they scare, the more bratwurst Marcus buys.
The "No Backsies" Clause: Their policy is crystal clear: Once you pay, there are no refunds. Even if you later prove you had a license, or that the person claiming the image didn't actually own it, the money is gone. It is a "snatch and grab" operation designed to bank on your initial panic.
Zero Human Oversight: The "Legal Department" mentioned in their emails is largely mythical. The system is driven by an image-scraping bot that cannot distinguish between a legitimate commercial use and a tiny, low-res thumbnail used by a charity or a hobbyist. It doesn't look for "theft"; it looks for a pay-day.
Legal Empty Threats: They rely on the fact that most people don't have a lawyer on speed dial. They send high-pressure PDFs that look like legal documents but are actually just automated invoices. They know that for every 100 people who ignore them, one victim will pay up out of fear.
Partners in Shite: The Hall of Shame
These are the big agencies that plug their massive databases into the Marcus Shite-Bot. They provide the "bait," and Marcus provides the "threats." It’s a match made in a Berlin basement.
| Agency Name | Their "Specialty" | The Shite Factor |
|---|---|---|
| Yay Images | Generic stock photos of people pointing at laptops. | The most frequent flyer. They claim images so common they're practically part of the internet's DNA. They have a TrustPilot score of 1.2 that's 0.1 higher than Copytrack! |
| WENN Rights | Paparazzi shots of celebrities looking annoyed. | Monetising "emotional distress" by charging a local blogger €1,500 for a 10-year-old photo of a soap star buying milk. |
| IMAGO | High-volume German stock and editorial imagery. | The local Berlin connection. They love a good "Administrative Fee" almost as much as Marcus loves a bratwurst. |
| Mauritius Images | Nature, travel, and things that should be free. | They’ve essentially tried to copyright the concept of "outdoors." If you’ve used a photo of a tree, they’re watching. |
| "The Ghost Artists" | Individual "pros" who upload bait for a living. | People who don't actually sell photos—they just wait for someone to use them so they can split the commission. |
Why this partnership is Shite:
The Reputation Shield: These big agencies use Copytrack so they can claim "it was just an automated error" if they get caught, while still happily pocketing their 55% share of your panic-money.
The Verification Void: As we proved, these "Partners" don't even check if they own the images they are claiming. The system is so incompetent it allowed us to "protect" Copytrack's own website assets.
The No-Refunds Trap: Once these partners get your money, they keep it. Even if you prove the claim was fraudulent, their policy is a "finders keepers" model of legal ethics.
A Note to the Artists (The people Marcus is 'protecting')Look, we get it. You’re a photographer. You spend thousands on gear, you wait hours for the perfect light, and it’s soul-crushing to find your work being used on some random blog without a credit. You deserve to be paid.But Marcus isn’t your hero. He’s your brand’s worst nightmare. Here is why using the "Copytrack" model is actually hurting you:The 45% 'Bellend' Tax: Marcus takes a staggering 45% cut of any settlement. Nearly half of your money going to fund a Berlin basement script. You’re the one who did the work; why is the middleman eating the lion’s share of the bratwurst?Brand Suicide by Proxy: When the "Shite-Bot" sends an automated €1,500 demand to a local primary school, a tiny charity, or a hobbyist knitting blog, your name is the one associated with the threat. Do you really want your professional reputation linked to "automated extortion" and "shakedown tactics"?Zero Verification = Zero Respect: As we’ve proven, the system is so incompetent that anyone can claim anything. If a "legal enforcement" tool can be tricked into "protecting" its own logo by a stranger, it has zero credibility in a courtroom or in the court of public opinion.The "No Refunds" Stink: If a panicked user pays up and it turns out the claim was a bot-generated error, your partner (Marcus) keeps the money. This isn't "protecting copyright"; it’s professional-grade pocket-picking.There is a better way. Real professional photographers handle licensing disputes with human conversations, fair-market valuations, and actual legal experts—not with automated "shite-grams" sent from a server in Berlin.Don’t let a bellend be the face of your photography business.
Share your experience with us: [email protected].Marcus, send us a cease-and-desist (which we will definitely publish), you bellend.