I built a small app entirely by myself: the website, interface, and code were all created without a client, agency, or outside team. While searching for the app, I found an agency portfolio page presenting it as one of their projects, complete with a case study, screenshots, and a testimonial supposedly written by "Sophie" from my project. No such person exists, and there was never a client relationship behind the app.
The agency claims to have operated since 2020 and completed more than 100 projects, but its domain appears to have been registered recently. Its portfolio also contains screenshots with time-sensitive details from my site, which helped establish when the material was copied. After checking the source of several other portfolio entries, I found creator information pointing to unrelated people. At least one project openly describes itself as a personal project but is still accompanied by a fabricated client testimonial.
I have already contacted the agency and received no response. I have saved screenshots, archived the pages, and documented the copied content. The hosting appears to be offshore, there is no clear business address, and the only contact options are an email address and a messaging handle. Has anyone successfully had a false portfolio entry removed, and what practical steps should I take next?
3 Answers
This looks less like a normal agency dispute and more like a recently created lead-generation or scam site. Since it may be difficult to identify or pursue the operators across jurisdictions, focus first on practical channels: the hosting provider, registrar, search engines, and any other project owners whose work appears there. Contacting those people can also help establish a pattern of false claims.
Document everything before pushing too hard: capture the portfolio page, source code, screenshots, domain records, and dates. Archive both your original work and the copied page, and keep copies locally with timestamps. Then send a clear copyright-based removal request to the agency, host, registrar, and relevant search engines. You do not necessarily need to start with a lawsuit; a well-supported takedown request may be enough.
I have archived the pages and saved screenshots, and I already sent an email without getting a response. I am collecting the evidence in one place now.
The client-rendered week number is useful evidence because it gives the screenshot an approximate capture date. Save the page behavior, relevant source code, and a recording showing how the date is generated. Also preserve your own commit history and deployment records to establish that you built the project. Avoid impersonating a potential client or contacting alleged clients in a misleading way; stick to factual, documented notices.
It is based on the visitor’s local date, so it is not a perfect server timestamp, but it still helps narrow down when the screenshot was taken.
That makes sense. I am planning to notify the other creators whose projects appear in the portfolio so they can preserve their own evidence too.