Online libel is a serious problem. It can quickly and easily spiral out of hand and have far-reaching effects. People become emboldened by posting information anonymously and think that online defamation will be too difficult to prove or that the victim will be unable to fight back. Indeed, it can be a lengthy and laborious task, but it can be done. Recently, EcoFirst Pest Control (formerly EcoSure Pest Control) took on that fight and won.
The accusation: for several years, competitor, Johnny Hebda, had been going to online sites such as, RipoffReport.com and ComplaintsBoard.com, placing fabricated customer and employee reports of bad experiences with EcoFirst (EcoSure at the time).
Although EcoFirst Pest Control knew of the seeded fictitious postings, it took them some time to realize they needed to address the problem legally.
“We were shocked once we completed the analysis to determine how many customers we were losing on a weekly basis as a result of Johnny Hebda’s fictitious complaints. We ultimately decided that taking the matter to court was the only way to clear EcoFirst’s name and put the matter behind us.” Says David Royce, owner of EcoFirst Pest Control.
In the libel case 2:09-cv-01108-DB between the two rival companies, Judge Dee V. Benson (United States District Court, District of Utah) ruled in favor of EcoFirst Pest Control. Judge Benson found Johnny Hebda’s fictitious postings were indeed libelous and made the following ruling:
- Hebda was ordered to pay EcoFirst $1,973,300 in damages.
- Hebda was ordered to refrain from posting any additional statements on websites (including RipoffReport.com and ComplaintsBoard.com) about EcoFirst or any affiliated companies.
- Hebda was ordered to pay EcoFirst’s attorney fees.
Judge Benson also ordered the two websites named in the proceedings, RipoffReport.com and ComplaintsBoard.com, to remove the falsified postings placed by Hebda.
“Unfortunately customers don’t have a way to discern what is true and false online. If a competitor writes numerous fictitious complaints online with mal intent, pretending to be former EcoFirst customers/employees, then the competitor should be held responsible for his/her actions in a court of law and be prepared to pay for all damages incurred. We hope that our commitment to resolve these matters in court will deter other competitors from engaging in similar acts of libel in the future,” says Royce.
EcoFirst is an accredited Better Business Bureau (BBB) business and has recently been named by PCT magazine (http://66.181.99.28/PCT0511_top100list.aspx) as the fastest growing pest control company in North America.
“Reputation is important for all service industries. We are proud of the quality growth EcoFirst Pest Control has been able to achieve in the past three years, and we are excited to move forward from this experience stronger because of it.” –David Royce
