How to find out if someone is selling your art

Start with a clear, web-sized export of the illustration and a photograph of a product carrying it. The artwork export helps you search beyond the product you happen to sell. The product photograph gives you another view to try when the first search is unhelpful.

If the photograph includes a frame, hands or a busy room, make a separate crop around the design. Keep the original untouched. Do not upload your layered master file just to run a search; use an image you are comfortable submitting to the search service.

For a repeating pattern, try a view showing several repeats as well as a recognisable detail. For lettering, keep a version with the entire phrase visible. Give each reference a simple name so you can record which one you searched.

On a computer, Google’s image-search guidance lets you upload a file through Search by image or paste an image URL. Results can include similar images and pages containing them. You can also add words to a Lens search. Use Google’s instructions below if the interface differs on your device.

Start with the complete artwork. Open relevant results, then repeat with your crop and product photograph. Change one input at a time so you can tell which reference produced a useful lead. A page showing a similar subject is not necessarily using your work.

If you only get your own shop, try another view and a different description. An empty or irrelevant result is a record of that search, not confirmation that no copies exist. Some listings may not be visible to the search service at all.

A seller who does not know your collection name may describe what they see. Pair the subject with a visible detail and a product type. Try the wording in the marketplace’s own search as well as a general web search. These are complementary checks; neither covers every listing.

Hypothetical example: your print is called ‘After the Rain’ and shows a fox carrying a yellow umbrella. Useful searches might include ‘fox yellow umbrella mug’, ‘fox umbrella shirt’ and ‘fox rainy day poster’. The collection name is still worth trying, but it should not be the only query.

For a design containing distinctive text, try the exact phrase in quotation marks, then a shorter fragment. Use a site-specific query, such as site:etsy.com followed by the description, to narrow web results. A site-specific search only returns pages that search engine can surface; it is not a complete search of the marketplace.

Open the product page and inspect the largest available image. Compare line shapes, spacing, small imperfections and the relationship between elements. A shared idea such as ‘a fox with an umbrella’ is a weak basis for a conclusion; an identical arrangement of distinctive marks deserves closer attention.

Record differences too. The composition may be independently drawn, use licensed stock elements or belong to an authorised partner. If you cannot see enough detail, mark the result as unclear. Do not fill the gaps with a confident accusation.

Save the listing URL rather than just the search-result URL. Include the shop name, observed date, reference image and a short comparison note. Keep the screenshot and original together so you can revisit the decision later.

Choose a handful of important designs to begin with: recent releases, work customers recognise and images already attracting suspicious uses. Set a review slot you can sustain. A focused routine is easier to maintain than trying to search your entire back catalogue in one sitting.

Use the same fields each time. Record searches that found nothing as well as useful leads. On the next pass, you can try a new image or query without wondering what you already checked. Separate ‘first seen by me’ from any publication date claimed by the listing.

If you find an Etsy listing, use the linked guide to check it and understand the reporting route. If you need to contact an independent shop, start with a factual request identifying the original and the listing. Finding a similar image does not itself establish a legal claim.

For artists selling through Shopify, Copywatch can import a public catalogue and run recurring image and product-name searches for selected products. Possible matches enter a review queue, where you can dismiss unrelated results or keep useful leads for action. It does not connect directly to an Etsy catalogue or guarantee complete marketplace coverage.