Long lost friend has taken a photo of my house and posted it on Instagram

[instapaints]

Last week, a friend (whom I've not seen in nearly 2 years) texted me that she was in the area and asked we could meet to 'catch up on old times'. I unfortunately wasn't free and she told me that she could just stop by my place for a quick coffee. Fine. An hour of good conversation later, and she brought out essential oils for me to try out and possibly buy! Bit odd, but I declined and we parted ways.

Today, I decided to look her up on Instagram for some reason and saw photos of my living room and kitchen with the caption 'new furniture!' The hashtags were all related to the oils she was selling, with the bottles being in the picture too so it looked like some sort of ad? I've messaged her about this but she hasn't replied yet.

Is there something I can do to get these pictures taken down?

Definitely did not see her taking pictures! Only time she was alone was when I went to the loo and when I had to take an emergency call from work. Think she's on MN too so I hope she bloody sees this thread.

Ah. DoTerra, I presume?

Wow. Sounds like one of the pyramid schemes.

@instapaints i so want to see her profile so i could guess what's hers and what's not🙈

Demand she takes them down or threaten to plaster SM with this. Also comment on her insta pics “why are you pretending that my house is yours? I want you to remove these photos immediately - I did not give you permission to use my interiors to promote your “business”

Cheeky bitch!

I would just comment something like 'lol how weird that you've taken photos of my house without my knowledge or permission and have posted them up on here. Anyway enjoyed having you over, have to do it again sometime'.

I guess you should be flattered! Seriously though, if there isn't anything that would identify your house, I'd leave it alone. Apart from sending your 'friend' a note telling her you are unhappy about her posting a photo of your house without your permission.

If you make a fuss, it might mean the photos come to be identified with you, which would make things worse.

You definitely need to comment under the photo OP. Make her squirm. Something like 'weird, I didn't realise you took photos of MY house when you were round. Looks good doesn't it'

What a weirdo. Yes comment on the insta thread and try to call her tell her in no uncertain terms that it’s not ok and she is to take the pictures down. If she doesn’t answer email/text her too.

Well that's one way to destroy a friendship!

Definitely don't need people like her in your life. Hoping IG takes them down pronto!

What harm can it do you?
No point in getting annoyed, waste of energy, just ignore.
If you hadn't looked at her Instagram you'd have been none the wiser

I'd make a fuss about it with the mlm company too. This is so not on!

I don’t ‘do’ Instagram, so don’t know what they’ll do. And obviously I’d never have seen them 🤣 but if I had, I would make it very clear on there that she’s taken the photos sneakily OF MY house , I didn’t buy the oils and that her ‘fake friendship’ technique is going to leave her friendless.

What a twat.

I can completely sympathise OP. It's downright creepy. I recently thought the dog sitter my mum had was a bit shifty so I looked at her fb. My mum lives in a very nice house and the dog sitter had been posting pictures pretending she lived there! I'd call the "friend" out on it, I'd be too angry not to say anything

I would definitely call her out in public and block her, what a CF!

@instapaints found your "friend"! @slartibarti

What harm can it do you?

Some people prefer to keep their lives private. Thats why

But it's not just using OP's house without permission, is it? It's in support of committing (moral, if not legal) fraud. The 'new furniture' comment is to mislead people, to pretend that selling this crap provides serious income, and to suck others into selling it.

I'd complain to whatever company is involved too. Point out to them that one of their 'representatives' is acting fraudulently and you want them to deal with it/her. I'm sure they'll brush you off, but I'd still do it so that they can't claim they know nothing of it.

I guess you should be flattered

I would be if she had asked for permission to take the photos.

Her saying “new furniture” tries to make out that the business is so lucrative that she can afford to splash out. Somebody desperate for money might fall for it. She’s an unscrupulous, deceiving liar. And i would definitely be calling her out on it.

Never underestimate the cheeky fuckery of an MLM bot! Is she trying to sell DoTERRA? All bots are told to fake it ‘til they make it, but conning her followers into thinking your house is hers courtesy of her so-called success in network marketing takes the biscuit.

Call her out in a public post on IG and report her. Have you thought about screenshooting the posts and dropping her in it on the MLM lies exposed FB page?

It's in support of committing (moral, if not legal) fraud. The 'new furniture' comment is to mislead people, to pretend that selling this crap provides serious income, and to suck others into selling it.

There’s a good point somewhere there on a moral level, but I don’t believe it would stand up as defrauding anybody specifically, any more than you can say perfume companies are defrauding you when they advertise their pungently smelling liquids using young, beautiful models, whom you will in no way resemble, however liberally you spray them across your décolletage.

@thejollyroger I'm not claiming to be an expert here but use of private property in a commercial endeavor does have some legality around it. I have done some (basic) shoots of products at friend's homes who had interesting features etc and I had to get a property release form that they signed to be able to use the images everywhere I needed to and to (in some cases) sell the actual images.

What harm can it do? None to the OP but it's a bit weird.

On the other hand MLM 'bosses' target vulnerable people, new mothers, single mothers, people who are struggling etc and part of their 'tools' in doing this are lying. In this case if you 'work for me' you will be able to afford a nice new-build/new kitchen/designer coffee table/whatever the photos show. It's dishonest and an awful way to 'recruit' people into something that will lose them money/friends/family/make their mental health worse/all the other things that have happened to people who have been recruited into MLMs and then when they 'escape' try and help others to not fall into the trap.

Stuff like this happens. I’d just put a polite post on the photo saying it’s your house, the photo was taken without your knowledge, and you are unhappy with the photo being used, and then ignore her.

I used to let a local teenager ride my horse once. I don’t use Instagram much but she tagged me in some photos on FB which were also on Instagram so I went over and had a look. She’d lifted a load of photos of me on my horse competing and jumping things from my FB account, cropped them so my head was not in the shot, and then pretended they were her. It was very annoying and I pointed out to her that it was silly and not polite to do this kind of thing. She didn’t take that well. I don’t think people who do this kind of thing expect to be found out and it’s a shock to them when they are and find it’s caused upset.

@thejollyroger you’re claiming it’s legal so what law are YOU referring to?

Privacy laws. Look them up.

If the photographer is on public property, she can take a photo of a private property (outside of house from pavement). She can’t go inside someone’s house and photograph their living room without permission, lol.