An issue of stealing items, possible?

I Co Own a club and a store. The store is compiled of items my co-owner and I have built but also of items that patrons or those that work at the club may need. Such as clothing and skins, etc.

Since I am not the goddess of all builds of SL, to compile this store of mixed items I search SL from Full permission stores to individuals and buy full permissions for their items. I don't sell tons of stuff from doing this, the cost of these items are very very low to MY buyers.

Today, I get an IM saying my skins and shapes are stolen that I am selling for 75-100 lindens each. They were stolen from someone that sells skins/shapes for 4-5000 lindens. I go and check these skins/shapes in question. The creator she states is not the creator on any of these items. In total 3 different creators on 6 skins/shapes. She wanted me to remove them pronto until the items could be further looked into. She was irate that I wouldn't remove them all.

I bought them from different places even that are not connected. With having all different creators I wondered if it was possible that there was a skin conspiracy going on I wasn't aware off. I found it hard to swallow that this was the case. I looked at her as though she was nuts and didn't remove these items from the store but I do have someone I trust looking into the matter further.

I didn't think it was possible to change a creators name on an object that someone else created or am I being a complete blond here and there is? Perhaps if textures where given and a copy of said item was then made, but is it possible to do even that and have the item listed as stolen?

Any enlightment on this? [and these said skins/shapes are all over the full permissions market in numerous full permission stores]

Much, probably more accurately most, of the stuff to be found in the SL resale business is either outright stolen, or inadvertently released to the wild. The creator name listed on an item does not, unfortunately, necessarily tell you what is what, because in many cases these can be easily changed either within the Second Life client or easily-obtained outside software.

there is no difficultie in stealing skins /or textures). it can be done by extracting them from the graphics-cache with some additional software.

Did they tell you where the items were supposedly stolen from? If so, I'd check them out and if it looks like they were stolen, remove them from your place and send the real creator copies of the ones you have with a note saying you didn't know they were stolen and that you've removed them from your place. If the real creator wants to, they can then chase the pirate down and DMCA them.

Unfortunately, "Full permission stores" most often translates to "Source of stolen merchandise". Caveat emptor. There are plenty of people in SL with low moral values who won't think twice about ripping of other people's hard work and selling it for a pittance to people like you. And then you catch the flack for their misdeeds, when you become an accomplice by reselling the stolen merchandise. There are plenty of ways, unfortunately, to rip off clothing and skin textures, or the designs of prim objects.

In general, there are two kinds of legitimate merchandise in SL: Stuff the creator is selling for a profit, and stuff that is given away for free, with the intent that it should NOT be resold for a profit. The free stuff is often a creator's earlier efforts, and has been eclipsed by their later, higher-quality work.

If someone is offering to sell you a "Genuine Rolex Watch" for fifty bucks on a street corner, you know it's either fake or stolen. If someone is offering to sell you clothes or skins or other merchandise, with untrestricted resale rights, ask yourself this : "Why are they willing to cut their own throats and give up their own profits, if they own the rights to resale of those items?" When someone offers to sell you something that looks far more valuable than the price they are asking for it, with full permissions and the promise that you're free to resell the items at whatever price you feel is fair, it is almost certainly a questionable deal.

yes I was told whom the skins were stolen from. I did go to this shop and I took pictures of what she had for sale and out for the public. I took it back to my shop and compared .. The models totally different Not the same Av at all. [I was told the models were the same used] I tried to compare shadows and light..definition of depth of tones. Even the shading for a firm belly, nipple shape, and make up as well.

I tired to be open minded about all this and look for facts. For one, I was told the models were the same. Not, not even the same poses in the pictures. Although the shading of light on the skins appeared to be close, the matching of [6 pack] cut in the form of shadowing didn't compare at all. One having no definition of muscle at all where as the other did. Not even the same shades of make up could I even come close to matching.

The nipples in two of the ones I have come very close to appearing to be the same likeness. But could this simply be the artwork of someone trying to get it close to the "apparent" stolen ones? This I will probably never know. IF they are truly stolen skins, someone took the time to change shading and make up as well.

Bottom line of my findings after my initial investigation. That yes someone tried to come as close to the look of this persons skins, but so many others are doing that too that make them. There are to many differences to say yes they are the same. No identical markings I could find except for two sets [out of 6 sets] of nipples looked close in comparison.

Until I find out otherwise, I guess I am selling high quality skins at rock bottom prices!