How do you counter DMCA removal requests from Google when you are on the wrong end of the table? Admittedly, this can be a bit stressful and tiring as it is usually the last thing on your mind. However, you have to do what you have to do to get your website running.
When someone copies your work (video, image, audio, paragraphs, etc), what should be your next line of action? Obviously, you need to file a DMCA complaint against such a person. Google doesn’t take these complaints lightly at all.
Google would do an instant follow-up and could meet the violator with strict actions. They have a transparency page where they publish DMCA requests that they have processed. You can easily enter your web domain to know if your website has been flagged and the number of requests others have made against your domain.
A Notice of DMCA removal from Google Search is usually submitted by a third-party organization. These organizations specialize in finding violating content and submitting DMCA removal requests to Google. Hence, in many cases, these acts of removal from the Google Search Results Page aren’t initiated by Google or any of their services. Rather, they are initiated by third-party platforms.
That said, these third-party organizations can collect the URLs that violate content rights. They do this many times using spiders and bots circulating the Internet. These bits can note down each URL that is infringing Google’s terms and conditions.
Google, then, uses its reviewers to verify these claims. These reviewers may use automatic bots to assess the situation. But in the end, the decision is made by humans. If the reviewer thinks the removal request is right he may remove the URL links to the online content without warning the creator or owner.
This can affect your website’s SEO ranking, especially if a great percentage of your website links are believed to be violating Google’s terms and conditions. This could imply that your website is simply just infringing copyright laws.
While Google keeps doing its best to ensure a perfect DMCA takedown, it still makes some mistakes. This is partly due to human error as these requests are processed by human workers, not robots.
Therefore, there is a good chance that you have been unfairly treated. In this case, you should be able to counter DMCA removal requests from the Google Search results page. You don’t have to panic as there is a solution to this request.
How to Counter DMCA Removal Request from Google
Google has a simple Counter-Notice System that works quite well. When you submit a counter DMCA removal request from Google, you can expect to receive a follow-up email in 48 hours. You can fill out why you hold the belief that the removal was an error on the other party’s part.
When you submit the form, Google will send you a confirmation email that they have received your request to counter the notice. Google goes on to send the third party organization this request. Remember, this is the same organization that recommended your URL for removal.
The third-party organization will then have to make a response to the counter via Google. If this organization doesn’t reply to your counter which Google sends to them within 14 days, Google has the obligation to reinstate your URL. Then, Google restores your URL within 10 days after the 14-day hiatus from the third-party organization.
However, they would most likely reply. You can count on this. When the organization sends their response, you may be asked to provide legal contact and further information.
Ultimately, if you are adjudged to have been wrongly indicted, Google would have to restore your URL. But, this is greatly dependent on the strength of your claim and the action recommended by the third-party organization.
So, you have to prove to them in writing that you do not infringe on agreed terms and policies. This is the most important thing you can do to save yourself from this muddy situation.
Please, note that any page on your website can be requested to be removed if such a page has infringing content. It makes no difference when you are writing a counter DMCA removal request to inform Google that a certain page isn’t a core page. All pages must have zero infringing content.
Steps
- In case you have received an email from Google regarding the DMCA, you should click the link in the email so you can counter DMCA removal request from Google. Again, click the link that is located right beneath “What You Can Do Next”.
- You will now be redirected to the DMCA Counter-Notification Form. In this form, you should fill all the fields with the correct information.
- The section “Please Provide More Details TO Justify Your Request” is an important one where you should add as many additional details as possible. This will help the Google reviewer to carefully assess the situation and take the appropriate action.
Final Words
If you want your URL to be whitelisted, you have to ensure that you do not have any infringing content on your website. And if your URL has been removed from the Google Search Results Page, all that should matter to you is getting listed again.
You can get listed again by sending a counter DMCA notice by convincing them that your web content is not infringing on any terms, policies, or conditions. As a last resort, you can also change the hard URL of the root category.
Ultimately, you should endeavor to review each content before uploading them on your website.
