Author Topic: Account blocked - another story (Read 17499 times)

aprott · « **on:** September 14, 2023, 00:29 »

Wow! 16 years of experience in the stock industry. Gone through the tough school of early iStock quality control - Jasmin knows what I’m talking about :-). After giving up iStock exclusivity 6 years experience as Adobe Stock contributor with a very high acceptance rate. Currently 4000 assets and heading for 18000 downloads in 2023, all time rank below 3600, weekly around 1000. You know how much effort goes into building such a portfolio and I think I produced value for Adobe.

On Tuesday evening my account was blocked and I am waiting for the verdict. Have played around with AI a little bit, but wasn’t satisfied with the image quality. So I only have a very limited AI portfolio. After the new warning not to use „in the style of“ I even proactively deleted all images which might pose a problem.

So in fact I’m more of a victim of the AI spammers because of the long inspection times. And now Adobe blocked my portfolio without explanation and let’s me wait until someone has time to explain. Adobe used to be my favorite and most valuable agency because it seemed to be the most fair one - you can be so wrong.

I’m hoping for a speedy and fair trial so I can move on - you can imagine my daily loss of revenue and opportunities for seasonal uploads which are waiting on my hard drive. A solution for me might be reactivating my shutter account which I cancelled in protest of their new payment structures of 2020. Or even going exclusive with iStock again.

PS: I don’t know whether I got the Wednesday surprise bonus for AI training, since my account was already blocked.

cobalt · « **Reply #1 on:** September 14, 2023, 01:36 »

This makes sad reading.

The most important earning season of the year.

I sincerly hope they get to you soon.

I don‘t understand why Adobe cannot create a better process to handle this issue.

Terrible, I am so sorry.

aprott · « **Reply #2 on:** September 14, 2023, 01:52 »

Quote from: cobalt on September 14, 2023, 01:36

This makes sad reading.

The most important earning season of the year.

I sincerly hope they get to you soon.

I don‘t understand why Adobe cannot create a better process to handle this issue.

Terrible, I am so sorry.

Thanks, Jasmin.
I don’t even know whether I will ever get my not yet payed out earnings of 1,5 months (around 1800 DLs).

cobalt · « **Reply #3 on:** September 14, 2023, 01:58 »

Please let us know if at least the payout arrives.

Stock is often the dominant family income in higher ranks.

Cutting people off like this is very cruel.

HalfFull · « **Reply #4 on:** September 14, 2023, 02:11 »

I have to admit, it's stories like this that stop me from submitting any AI imagery. Especially when it's an act first ask questions later approach. I do feel they should reach out first giving the contributor X number of days to respond. It could be something that is resolved very quickly and prevent someone's income being taken away which maybe relied on for paying for food and bills etc. This is my only income so the thought of it being cut off for any period of time is worrying to say the least.

I hope it's sorted out very quickly!!!

Justanotherphotographer · « **Reply #5 on:** September 14, 2023, 02:59 »

Quote from: aprott on September 14, 2023, 00:29

..
PS: I don’t know whether I got the Wednesday surprise bonus for AI training, since my account was already blocked.

Wow, first Kirsty now another contributor that has propped up these companies for years/ decades.

After their work was used to train their replacement and just when they were about to cash out what I assume was a large chunk of cash (as these were large well established portfolios). What a strange coincidence.

kjpargeter · « **Reply #6 on:** September 14, 2023, 04:18 »

I'm sorry to see that another long standing contributor has been blocked. I have still had no correspondence so I don't know whether I'm permanently blocked - I sincerely hope you get a good outcome to this!

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #7 on:** September 14, 2023, 12:06 »

I'm so sorry to hear of yet another abuse of longstanding contributors by a slapdash and thoughtless process on Adobe Stock's part.

Angry commentary warning

It's a disgrace. Adobe should be ashamed of how it is treating Adobe Stock contributors - and I don't want to hear "without you there is no us" until blocking established accounts stops (I'm thinking one year is a reasonable milestone).

It adds insult to injury to fail on the communications front as well - support apparently tells the affected contributors nothing about what prompted this action.

I realize Adobe is a large company that is mostly focused on its stock price and we are just a little source of costs off to the side of their main business, but the last several months have been pretty tough for contributors having to "suck it up and cope".

They're big, we're small - the power dynamic is why things play out the way they do.

Questions about accepted content - content Adobe's moderation team accepted, let's not forget - must not result in a blocked account.

-Send email to the contributor detailing the potential issue and ask them to contribute any information that might help in the investigation.
-Block upload privileges during the investigation
-Remove from active status the images being investigated but leave everything else for sale
-Send progress email with information about the investigation (weekly would be good given how long things are taking)
-Prioritize investigations to handle contributors with long-standing accounts first; 10+ years, 5+ years, 1+ years, newbies
-If the investigation isn't concluded within 4 weeks, enable upload privileges, possibly with instructions to the contributor not to upload certain types of content

Established contributors have an equal interest in getting things sorted out and uploading only the content Adobe Stock wants to have. Make use of them to get whatever these problems are sorted out.

cobalt · « **Reply #8 on:** September 14, 2023, 12:44 »

It is very simple:

If a member of the Adobe team makes a serious mistake - would Adobe stop paying the salary while somebody investigates the problem?

Are programmers, engineers, marketing staff ever treated like that? Cleaning staff? A computer goes missing... do all the cleaning staff stop getting their salaries while somebody investigates what happened?

Of course not.

Now, obviously we are NOT employed by Adobe.

But many producers have for years preferred Adobe and many families make a full time or mostly majority income from Adobe.

At the same time - the producers are customers. We use Adobe software, we buy Adobe stock content, we send useful images from the Adobe offering to clients and friends who are looking for content.

I sometimes wonder if companies that are so extremely big, forget that the little ants down there do actually matter. Our voice matters.

Portfolio closures are the worst nightmare for any producer. And are usually reserved for very extreme cases of real intentional fraud.

To just treat all producers as useless is absolutely not respectful.

And a sign our working relationship is not valued.

I do not understand what is going on behind the scenes, but if this is the "new Adobe" that is not good for us.

aprott · « **Reply #9 on:** September 14, 2023, 15:02 »

Quote from: cobalt on September 14, 2023, 01:58

Please let us know if at least the payout arrives.

Sure, I will keep you all updated. Thanks to all for the supporting comments.

I would really appreciate if someone from Adobe would pick up all the good ideas on a respectful, fair and transparent process. Mat???

aprott · « **Reply #10 on:** September 20, 2023, 01:34 »

One week now - still waiting on a reaction by Adobe. Shoot first - ask muuuuch later…

Wilm · « **Reply #11 on:** September 20, 2023, 03:30 »

Quote from: aprott on September 20, 2023, 01:34

One week now - still waiting on a reaction by Adobe. Shoot first - ask muuuuch later…

I keep my fingers crossed that your portfolio will be back online as soon as possible and that Adobe will inform you in detail where the problem was!

kjpargeter · « **Reply #12 on:** September 20, 2023, 04:19 »

I'm at 2 weeks now of my portfolio being blocked and still no correspondence from Adobe!

Wilm · « **Reply #13 on:** September 20, 2023, 05:14 »

Quote from: kjpargeter on September 20, 2023, 04:19

I'm at 2 weeks now of my portfolio being blocked and still no correspondence from Adobe!

So I keep my fingers crossed for you as well!

thx9000 · « **Reply #14 on:** September 20, 2023, 09:18 »

These bans are becoming alarmingly common now. The whole procedure seems arbitrary, especially considering some of these contributors have a long, spotless history with the agency. Myself I started finally working with AI after a long hesitation and now apparently I'm putting my whole portfolio at risk because having a proven track record means nothing and inadvertently tresspassing some deliberately vague guidelines could be the end of it. Click that checkbox, put your head on the chopping block and hope the axe won't come down

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #15 on:** September 20, 2023, 09:47 »

Even angrier - time passes and contributors are left hanging

Adobe Stock should be even more ashamed of its pitiful treatment of long-term contributors. It's hard to draw any conclusion other than they don't give a flying ~~furby~~, ~~duck~~, ~~turkey~~

Meanwhile, the flood of dreck pours in - Apple logos, children with three legs, a woman with three arms, stairs to oblivion, Jesus with 6 fingers, calendars with 9 days in the week (one had a day Turdssday which seems appropriate).

In the face of continuing acceptance of work that should have been rejected, the outrage of holding established accounts hostage for weeks seems pointless as well as wrong.

I'll add another item to my list of what Adobe should be doing:

- once the portfolio has been restored, credit the contributor with earnings for the blocked period (an average of their daily earnings for 2023 so far should work as a daily rate). Adobe is in the wrong; Adobe has the money; it might encourage them to handle portfolio investigations for established contributors without blocking accounts going forward

Uncle Pete · « **Reply #16 on:** September 20, 2023, 20:33 »

Quote from: aprott on September 20, 2023, 01:34

One week now - still waiting on a reaction by Adobe. Shoot first - ask muuuuch later…

My only wish would be that they did this with the image thieves, instead of over reacting to a change in policy, after the fact.

Good Luck.

blvdone · « **Reply #17 on:** September 20, 2023, 21:45 »

My guess is Adobe Stock got sued for is AI generated images already and is panicking. So as a precaution, they are just blocking accounts left and right.

cobalt · « **Reply #18 on:** September 20, 2023, 22:20 »

Quote from: blvdone on September 20, 2023, 21:45

My guess is Adobe Stock got sued for is AI generated images already and is panicking. So as a precaution, they are just blocking accounts left and right.

If they got sued they would stop accepting content with visible copyright issues.

The normal photo queue does not allow this kind of crap to get in. It is only ai content that seems to let this stuff through.

Something is very seriously wrong if they treat longtime contributors this way.

It does nothing to stop the real problem: the reviewers who don‘t seem to have legal training and do not even read titles that are worded with well known brands.

I am so sorry for all those who have their account abruptly blocked.

What a crazy situation.

gnirtS · « **Reply #19 on:** September 21, 2023, 00:18 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on September 14, 2023, 12:06

Questions about accepted content - content Adobe's moderation team accepted, let's not forget - must not result in a blocked account.

-Send email to the contributor detailing the potential issue and ask them to contribute any information that might help in the investigation.
-Block upload privileges during the investigation
-Remove from active status the images being investigated but leave everything else for sale
-Send progress email with information about the investigation (weekly would be good given how long things are taking)
-Prioritize investigations to handle contributors with long-standing accounts first; 10+ years, 5+ years, 1+ years, newbies
-If the investigation isn't concluded within 4 weeks, enable upload privileges, possibly with instructions to the contributor not to upload certain types of content

Seems fair but i'd like to see the account kept online (minus the queried media) and sale money held in escrow. If the investigation finds in the contributors favour, its transferred to their account. That way we won't see the anecdotal de-ranking of media even after an account is returned.

Im seeing more and more of these account blocks and from people who im sure aren't doing anything wrong. Some appear to be blocked due to suspicious transactions on their account so if a scammer picks you to test, unlucky.

I used to have zero faith in not waking up one morning to find SS blocked for no reason. I now feel exactly the same could happen to anyone on AS at any time.

aprott · « **Reply #20 on:** September 22, 2023, 13:38 »

OK here is the answer to my second urgent email to contrib support:
----
You have submitted files that refer to famous artists, people, characters from popular culture, and/or other existing subjects such as video games in the image, title or keywords. We take intellectual property rights very seriously and your uploads are a violation of these rights and thus violate the upload guidelines.

Your account will remain blocked until further notice.
----
As I have mentioned in my OP I went through my account before the block to remove images which might pose a problem. Perhaps I missed something or they refer to an earlier state of my portfolio.
I answered that I immediately went through my portfolio and deleted all images which might pose a problem according to the concretized AI requirements and apologize if I have missed anything. For a speedy unblock I proposed to delete all my (limited number of) AI related content.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #21 on:** September 22, 2023, 14:19 »

So the email restates the general prohibition, but does not specify which of your images violates this rule?

And they can't just rescind the approval of the images in question - assuming there are any?

And as far as taking IP rights seriously, their own moderation decisions speak more loudly than the words in their email.

This Apple logo is still there nearly two weeks after I posted it here. This week I've seen more Apple logos, Spiderman costumes, mentions of Barbie in image titles. Lots of new content breaking the rules. Lots of old logos still left online...

If you messed up and uploaded something you shouldn't have - that Adobe Stock moderators approved - then they should delete those/that image. Tell you how you messed up so you know not to do it again. Unblock your port.

But above all, fix the moderation process which, for AI images anyway, is hopelessly inept. Aside from the IP issues, human anatomy and the laws of physics are abused daily.

I'm so sorry that this is happening to you. As a fellow contributor, the memories of how "the blocked" have been treated by Adobe will remain long after they clean this wreck up.

Edited Sep 24 to add more examples - most new, but the Joan Miro examples I searched for - of logos and references to copyrighted or protected content that continue to flow into the genAI collection. The coloring pages have barbie in the keywords, although not in the title:

https://stock.adobe.com/images/workspaces-with-a-focus-on-ergonomic-furnishings/640074344

https://stock.adobe.com/images/a-barbie-doll-wearing-a-pink-robe-and-holding-a-glass-in-her-hand-standing-next-to-a-bookcase/642670509

https://stock.adobe.com/search?creator_id=211549319&k=barbie

https://stock.adobe.com/images/half-body-profile-in-joan-miro-style-showing-the-texture-of-thick-oil-paint-strokes-on-the-rustic-canvas-generative-ai/619269849
https://stock.adobe.com/images/modern-house-award-winning-architecture-colors-curves-wallpaper-background-joan-miro-style/638884521

derby · « **Reply #22 on:** September 22, 2023, 14:46 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on September 22, 2023, 14:19

And as far as taking IP rights seriously, their own moderation decisions speak more loudly than the words in their email.

This Apple logo is still there nearly two weeks after I posted it here. This week I've seen more Apple logos, Spiderman costumes, mentions of Barbie in image titles. Lots of new content breaking the rules. Lots of old logos still left online...

Yes, this is really a nonsense....

cobalt · « **Reply #23 on:** September 22, 2023, 14:55 »

@aprott

That is beyond infuriating. Nobody who is actually talking to you or looking at the issue.

This makes no sense at all.

What should be corrected is the training of the review team that is letting in all this strange content.

Who does not know barbie?

There are so many people reporting waiting times for more than 3 months.

A company the size of Adobe cannot implement a proper workflow to deal with this issue? What happened to their customer service support?

We are all customers.

Is the whole stock department such a negligeble afterthought in the total company process?

aprott · « **Reply #24 on:** September 22, 2023, 15:42 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on September 22, 2023, 14:19

So the email restates the general prohibition, but does not specify which of your images violates this rule?

And they can't just rescind the approval of the images in question - assuming there are any?
.

Exactly. I think the email is just an intermediate information triggered by my urgent second email. I think (or better hope) that the process is still in the making - a positive interpretation of the phrase „Your account will remain blocked until further notice.“

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Author Topic: Account blocked - another story (Read 17499 times)

aprott

cobalt

aprott

cobalt

HalfFull

Justanotherphotographer

kjpargeter

Jo Ann Snover

cobalt

aprott

aprott

Wilm

kjpargeter

Wilm

thx9000

Jo Ann Snover

Uncle Pete

blvdone

cobalt

gnirtS

aprott

Jo Ann Snover

derby

cobalt

aprott

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