This page is strictly for filing a complaint against the owner of an award program who is thought to have violated Award Sites! rules against another individual . . . It might involve an ethical matter, abusive language, spamming, and copyright violations.

You need to use the Problem Form, if you have encountered a bad link, inactivity, or other general problem against a rated award program or other listed site on Award Sites!

• You must be the copyright or intellectual property owner or authorized to act on the copyright or intellectual property owner's behalf.
• Email the offender in question, making this person aware that unauthorized use of your copyright / intellectual property or plagiarism of it is occurring. (Electronic proof of representing the owner is required, if contacting on behalf of the owner).  It is advisable to make screenshots of where the infringement / unauthorized use is occurring for supportive information if it becomes necessary for further recourse.
• Specifically, state what you want them to do (i.e. remove all copyright infringed / plagiarized material or provide statement of your ownership with use permission.) Also, mention that you have copied Award Sites! (service@awardsites.com) on the email.
• Award Sites! will then respond accordingly including temporary or permanent removal of the offender's listed award program if the problem is not settled to the owner's satisfaction within a reasonable period of time.
• Award Sites! will not become directly involve with any copyright issue including ownership rights, as it strictly provides rating and listing of award programs based on stated prerequisites, criteria, and rules.

All Other Issues Related To Violations of Listing Rules

Step 1
Determine which point of criteria or rule that the party against which you have a complaint has violated and make a note of it to yourself.

Step 2
Compose an email to Award Sites! detailing your complaint.  The email should contain, at the very minimum, these items:

• Specific criteria or rules violated
• Dates of incidents
• Parties involved (yourself, person / program which violated the criteria or rules, witnesses).
• Supportive evidence (see below for list of acceptable supportive evidence).

Step 3
Send the email to Award Sites! using "Complaint Against Award Sites! Rated Program and Owner" as the subject.  Be sure to attach your supportive evidence.

Step 4
Wait patiently . . . Due to the Award Sites! staff's schedule it could take several days to weeks before your complaint can be reviewed and determination if there is ample evidence to pursue appropriate action.  A notice will then be emailed to you about the decision.

Acceptable Supportive Evidence

• Emails Sent As Attachments

  • Award Sites! will require that any email you provide as evidence be sent attached to your complaint.
  • Award Sites! will not accept cut-and-paste emails, but only attachments so that it /they has/have the full header intact.
  • Award Sites! must receive the full history (original email and all responses in both directions).
  • If any emails are obviously missing, Award Sites! will not accept any of them as evidence.

  • Award Sites! is governed by the laws of the United States and Texas.  At this time there is no clear ruling regarding privacy notices in emails so Award Sites! will accept emails containing such notices as evidence.  However, if there is such a ruling which disallows their use, Award Sites! will not accept them from that point on, even if this ruling occurs after Award Sites! has accepted such emails as evidence.  In that event, you will be notified.

• Screen Shots

  • Award Sites! will accept screen-shots or captures as evidence if it is a full-window screen-shot which shows the url in the browser.  Such evidence should be in .jpg format and compressed to reduce file size, but not so much as to make it illegible.

  • This type of evidence should be sent attached to separate emails using numbered subject boxes (Complaint against Award Sites! rated program #2, etc.) to minimize download time.

• Witness Testimony

  • Witnesses should email Award Sites! directly use "Witness Statement Concerning Complaint" as the subject.
  • Award Sites! will accept email attachments as noted above, but prefer the direct method.  (Any witness testimony received as an attachment is subject to verification.)