How to Prevent Hijackers from Ripping Off Your Website

Imagine all of your hard work being ripped off by someone half way around the world. My first thought was always, “Ah, that’ll never happen to me. What are the chances?” Imagine my surprise when I found out my freelance website (HTML, CSS, graphics, design-down-to-the-last-detail) was hijacked by an Indonesian company.

I found out about this hijack through my Google Analytics results. I saw that I’d been getting about 28 hits a day from an Indonesian website as well as Google Search hits from keyword phrases such as “Terminal” and “Terminal Pulsa.” Thankfully, I’m curious by nature and investigated this odd behavior.

My first thought was, “How dare them! I worked hard on this site! Why would someone think this is okay to do?!” Quickly followed by, “Oh great, this place is overseas and surely they do not hold to the same legal standards as the United States. What do I do now?”

Please note that I am NOT a lawyer (thank God), but the following information should really help you out if you ever have this happen to you! Continue Reading