First Step to Protect Rights: How to Collect and Preserve Evidence of Infringement?
In the process of protecting intellectual property rights, collecting and preserving evidence of infringement is the crucial first step. Sufficient and effective evidence can not only help enterprises stand firm in legal procedures but also increase the likelihood of successful rights protection. This article will guide enterprises in detail on how to collect and preserve evidence of infringement, including screenshots, links, transaction records, etc., to prepare fully for possible legal actions.
I. Importance of Evidence of Infringement
In intellectual property cases, evidence is the key factor that determines the outcome. Without solid evidence, even if an enterprise has sufficient reason to believe that its intellectual property rights have been infringed, it is difficult to obtain legal support. Therefore, enterprises must pay high attention to the collection and preservation of evidence of infringement. Effective evidence can help enterprises:
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Prove the existence of infringing acts: Clearly show the specific infringing acts of the infringer, such as unauthorized use of trademarks, reproduction of copyrighted works, infringement of patented technologies, etc.
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Determine the scope and extent of infringement: Understand the breadth and severity of the infringing acts through evidence, including the sales volume of infringing products, market coverage, economic losses caused, etc.
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Support compensation claims: Provide a basis for the enterprise's compensation claims and help the enterprise obtain reasonable economic compensation.
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Enhance the confidence in negotiation and litigation: Sufficient evidence can strengthen the enterprise's negotiating position and confidence of winning in legal proceedings.
II. Methods of Collecting Evidence of Infringement
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Screenshots and Screen Recording
For online infringing acts, such as unauthorized online sales and illegal content dissemination, screenshots and screen recording are commonly used methods for collecting evidence.
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Screenshots: When discovering infringing content, promptly take screenshots of web pages, social media platforms, e-commerce platforms, etc. Ensure that the screenshots include detailed information of the infringing content, such as product images, text descriptions, sales prices, seller information, etc. At the same time, pay attention to the timestamp on the screenshot to prove the time when the infringing act occurred.
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Screen Recording: For dynamic infringing acts, such as live streaming infringement and video playback infringement, screen recording can more comprehensively record the infringing process. When screen recording, ensure that the画面 is clear and the sound is complete, clearly showing the entire process of the infringing act.
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Saving Links
Saving the network links of infringing content is an important piece of evidence, especially for content that may be deleted or modified at any time.
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Direct Saving: Copy and save the URL of the infringing content into a document or spreadsheet, noting the saving time, a brief description of the infringing content, etc.
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Using Third-party Tools: Use third-party tools like the "Internet Archive" (Wayback Machine) to save historical versions of web pages and ensure the long-term traceability of infringing evidence.
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Transaction Records
For sales behaviors involving infringing products, transaction records are key evidence.
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E-commerce Platform Records: When discovering infringing products on e-commerce platforms, promptly save transaction records, including order details, payment records, logistics information, buyer reviews, etc. These records can be obtained through the platform's "My Orders", "Transaction Details" and other functions, and exported as electronic documents or printed as paper copies.
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Offline Transaction Records: For infringing products sold offline, collect relevant sales invoices, receipts, contracts, transport documents, etc. These documents should record in detail the time, place, parties involved, transaction amount, and other information.
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Physical Evidence
For infringing products themselves, collecting physical evidence is very important.
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Purchasing Infringing Products: Purchase infringing products through regular channels and keep purchase receipts, such as invoices, receipts, credit card records, etc. During the purchase process, you can ask notary personnel to accompany you and notarize the purchase process to enhance the legal force of the evidence.
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Sealing Infringing Products: Seal the purchased infringing products to ensure that they are not tampered with in legal proceedings. When sealing, note the sealing time, sealer, etc. on the product packaging, and record the sealing process by taking photos or videos.
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Witness Testimonies
Witness testimonies can provide additional evidence support for infringing acts.
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Internal Employees: If internal employees of the enterprise discover infringing acts, you can ask them to issue a written testimony, detailing the discovery process and specific circumstances of the infringing act. The testimony should be signed by the witness and attached with the witness's identity documents.
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External Witnesses: For infringing acts in public places, such as exhibition infringement and street sales infringement, you can ask other personnel on the scene to act as witnesses and issue testimonies. The testimony should record in detail the time, place, and specific circumstances of the infringing act, and attach the contact information of the witness.
III. Precautions for Preserving Evidence of Infringement
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Ensure the Authenticity of Evidence
When collecting and preserving evidence of infringement, you must ensure the authenticity and integrity of the evidence. Any tampered, forged, or incomplete evidence may be excluded in legal proceedings, leading to the failure of the enterprise's rights protection. Therefore, when collecting evidence, enterprises should use reliable methods and tools as much as possible to ensure the originality and authenticity of the evidence.
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Maintain the Continuity of Evidence
Evidence of infringement should form a complete evidence chain, corroborating each other and jointly proving the existence and specific circumstances of the infringing act. For example, screenshots, links, transaction records, physical evidence, etc. should be related to each other and clearly show the entire process of the infringing act. When preserving evidence,整理 it in chronological and logical order to ensure the continuity and traceability of the evidence.
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Use Multiple Preservation Methods
To ensure the safety and traceability of evidence, it is recommended to use multiple preservation methods. In addition to electronic documents and paper files, you can also notarize important evidence and have a notary office issue a notarial deed to enhance the legal force of the evidence. At the same time, back up electronic evidence to multiple secure storage devices to prevent data loss or tampering.
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Regularly Check and Update Evidence
Infringing acts may change over time, so enterprises should regularly check and update evidence of infringement. For online infringing acts, regularly take screenshots and save links to ensure the timeliness of the evidence. For physical evidence, regularly check the sealing status to ensure the integrity and authenticity of the evidence.
IV. Summary and Suggestions
Collecting and preserving evidence of infringement is a key step in protecting intellectual property rights. Enterprises should attach great importance to this link, use scientific and effective methods to collect and preserve evidence, and ensure that they can fully prove the existence and specific circumstances of the infringing act in legal proceedings. Here are some specific suggestions:
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Establish an evidence collection mechanism: Enterprises should establish a special evidence collection and preservation mechanism, clarifying the responsible departments and individuals to ensure that evidence can be collected and preserved quickly and effectively when infringing acts are discovered.
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Train relevant personnel: Provide professional training for personnel responsible for evidence collection and preservation to familiarize them with the methods and precautions of evidence collection, improving the efficiency and quality of evidence collection.
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Regularly review and assess: Regularly review and assess the work of evidence collection and preservation, summarize experiences and lessons, continuously optimize the process of evidence collection and preservation, and improve the level of intellectual property protection of the enterprise.
On the path of intellectual property protection, enterprises must always remain vigilant, actively respond to infringing acts, and protect their legitimate rights and interests through legal means. Only in this way can they maintain a competitive edge in the market and achieve sustainable development. Finally, I would like to ask everyone a question: "What measures has your enterprise taken on the path of intellectual property protection? And what successful experiences or profound lessons have you learned?" Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment section and let's explore the mysteries of intellectual property together.
