I saw a story on TV that intrigued me to find out more.
Here’s a summary from Quartz:
Author Jane Friedman spotted more books on Amazon this week that falsely claimed to be written by her than ones she actually wrote.
At least five books under her name were taken down from Amazon yesterday (Aug. 8) after Friedman wrote a blog post on Aug. 7 detailing her experience finding books under her name being sold on Amazon and listed on Goodreads, the Amazon-owned social media and book-logging platform for readers.
https://qz.com/amazon-ai-generated-books-using-real-authors-names-1850720961
With the advent of AI, people are creating books in the voice of authors and selling them on Amazon as that author’s book. Jane Friedman had trouble contacting Amazon and getting the imposter books being sold in her name off their site. She discovered she needs to trademark her name to have more protection against this scam.
Here’s another story about the fake IA books on Amazon:
Five books for sale on Amazon were removed after author Jane Friedman complained that the titles were falsely listed as being written by her. The books, which Friedman believes were written by AI, were also listed on the Amazon-owned reviews site Goodreads.
“It feels like a violation, because it’s really low quality material with my name on it,” Friedman told the Guardian. The Ohio-based author has written several books about the publishing industry, and the fraudulent titles mimicked her real work. How to Write and Publish an eBook Quickly and Make Money and A Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting Compelling eBooks, Building a Thriving Author Platform, and Maximizing Profitability were two of the listed books. Friedman’s real books include The Business of Being a Writer and Publishing 101.
One of the falsely attributed books’ descriptions read: “This book offers practical strategies, tips, and techniques to help writers streamline their writing process, accelerate their eBook publication timeline, and maximize their earning potential.”
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/aug/09/amazon-removes-books-generated-by-ai-for-sale-under-authors-name
Have you heard about this scam before? What are your thoughts about AI and writing?
Oh my goodness…thank you for this public service announcement/bulletin. I hadn’t heard of this. Shocking! And yet not surprising? Wow. 😠
It’s a shame people would try to scam authors that way!
Agree…but I appreciate you bringing the concern forward. I’d missed this entirely.
I think Amazon is ripe for fraud of many kinds.
I read a blog post about it a couple of days ago. It’s disgraceful.
It is so wrong. I wonder what type of person would try to make money off of an author?
The dishonest types. The same people who steal or do online fraud.
Yes!
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I read about it too! Agree. Disgraceful! Thanks for highlighting this problem! I imagine it will only get worse. Hugs, C
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You better watch Amazon for more books under your name. Or better yet, trademark your name now 👍🏼
Not something I was aware of but then I usually borrow from the library so don’t often cruise Amazon for books. Like so much today though, I’m not surprised at all.
I really don’t think AI is going to work out for us in the big picture, if this is an indication.
I see it as a source of lots of problems depending on what people choose to do with it and how willing we are as a whole society to buy into it given how hard it is to determine facts already.
I think we’d be better off without it. I keep hearing how helpful it can be, but there are plenty of problems too.
Wow, I hadn’t heard of this one before, but I’m not surprised. With the exponential acceleration of technology, I fear that this is just the tip of the iceberg of what’s to come.
I agree with you. This is just a glimpse of the future.
It is a scary prospect. I can see where an author could garner a following who shares their point of view on something, or who considers them an expert on something, and then AI would make it seem that author is leaning differently which could sway those who respect them.
It is sad. We already feel like it is hard to find someone to trust. With this possibility, that would increase because we won’t be sure if someone we look up to really said what they’re said to have said. Ugh, I get a headache just saying that. It is like photoshop- can’t believe your own eyes anymore. Praise God for His Holy Spirit. We are going to have to lean on Him for discernment more than ever!
Yes! It’s a scary prospect of what is to come.
I just heard about this the other day. 😒
I can’t imagine people taking advantage of authors like that.
Neither can I.
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Have you heard about this scam before? I have not, but I’m cynical enough to say I’m not surprised.
What are your thoughts about AI and writing? I saw AI described as “plagiarism software” and that sums it up for me. I don’t live in fear of it, but it’s going to make all our lives more complicated. Case in point, Jane’s discovery.
I’m with you man n plagiarism software. I can’t imagine how students are using it.
Whoa – I hadn’t heard of this and the whole idea of borrowing someone’s name to do it fascinates and horrifies me! Glad she was able to get it resolved but holy smokes. Thanks for the interesting discussion, Elizabeth!
I can’t imagine the person who would steal an author’s name!
It’s crazy what ai can do. It’s also terrible that it opens up a market where people steal others’ work/names to make a profit. As someone who wishes to be a published author one day, I’m unsure about the future or even how to protect my work. Thank you for sharing and helping to keep people informed ❤️
I’m with you on wanting to be a published author (as in a book). I think what the writer who went public with this said is we have to trademark our name. Then anyone who uses it can be sued. Isn’t is awful that people would steal from hard working people?
Yes, definitely terrible that others think it is ok to steal from hard-working individuals. I feel trademarking your name is only part of the solution, though. We need more protocols for the internet and advancing technology in general. It feels like we aren’t keeping up in a lot of ways.
I agree with you. Technology moves so quickly it’s hard for our laws to keep up.
I haven’t head of this and how awful! Just one more thing to worry about in our fast-progressing world of technology. Thanks for sharing!
I can’t believe people and how unethical they can be!
Omg!! Just say no to AI and writing
I agree 100 percent. I see no upside.
While others have gleefully embraced AI, I have mostly felt trepidation. If it could only be used for good, that would be fine, but I know that humans have a tendency of finding ways to mess things up. I’m sorry that Jane is going through this, and I expect that she is not alone.
Yes! I saw some books like this and I reported them. They copied the name and artwork of the original, but the guts of the book were all messed up like they’d been copied wrong.
How bizarre!
Oh..this is insane. I’m hearing of such a thing for the first time.
It’s distressing!