On April 13, we began to receive reports that a site called Ebooks Tree was hosting MOBI and PDF files of works posted to the Archive of Our Own, and that they were charging for access to these files. Upon further investigation, it became clear that Ebooks Tree is not hosting MOBI files of AO3 works, but linking directly to the versions hosted on the AO3 servers, and we do not currently believe they are hosting PDF files, either. We’ve taken action to prevent anyone from downloading works by following the links provided by Ebooks Tree.
As this does not appear to be a case of bots downloading works, it is not a situation that could have been prevented by CAPTCHAs, which we mentioned in our initial post regarding Ebooks Tree. Because CAPTCHAs only work in a limited set of circumstances and create a number of problems for users who are not fluent in English or who have visual, auditory, or cognitive disabilities, they are not an option we are considering at this time.
While the best way to control who (or what) can access your work is to select the “Only show your work to registered users” option when posting or editing a work, we no longer believe it is necessary in this case.
Thanks to all our hardworking volunteers who have fielded reports about this situation! The Archive team and the rest of the OTW will continue to monitor the situation and keep you informed of any new developments. Please stay tuned for an additional update including information from the OTW’s Legal committee.
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