No help for Josepha

It has apparently had an effect, when three weeks ago Sermitsiaq exposed the website søstreneviogaja.dk as a scam, the sole purpose of which is to lure money out of the pockets of gullible knitting enthusiasts who want knitted sweaters with patterns inspired by the Greenlandic national costume.

In any case, the perpetrators have now changed the website so that it is no longer Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen's face that appears in the top AI-generated photo of the two sisters, who are allegedly behind the business.

In addition, the recommendations at the bottom of the page have been changed so that it is no longer photos of Sofia Rossen from Nuuk and Dorthe Ivalo Jensen from Sisimiut that catch the eye. But the text attributed to Else from Kolding and Bodil from Herning is unchanged.

The scam continues

So the scam continues – and we cannot warn enough against the website that entices with free shipping of Greenlandic knitwear to the Commonwealth. ”We pay the customs duty – no surprises!”

Although the website has now been changed, the illegal use of Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen’s face continues. On several of the cover photos, Josepha can still be seen in both the roles of Nivi and Aja.

Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen was amazed and dismayed when she discovered the scam.

- I haven’t knitted for almost two years, was her blunt comment.

- It is a huge problem when you obviously do not have digital ownership of your face. It is disgusting to know that you are being used to lure money out of people, says Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen.

- There is no doubt that Josepha is right. The use of a face for marketing purposes without consent is not permitted, explains Dr.jur. Thomas Riis, who is a professor of information law at the University of Copenhagen.

Many paragraphs violated

- As I see it, there are several paragraphs that have been violated in this specific case – including the GDPR regulations, but the question is whether you can use it for anything, says Thomas Riis.

- There is hardly any compensation or fee to be obtained for the unlawful use of the face – and money alone can hardly do it.

- It is a general problem on the internet. We saw it clearly a few years ago, when TV presenter Dyvia Das was abused on Facebook in the marketing of questionable bitcoin investments without consent.

- Both Dyvia Das and her employers at TV2 took up the case – and it was also reported to the police. Meta, which owns Facebook, would not do anything, and it also ended with the case being dropped by the police, who did not believe they could solve the case and lift a possible burden of proof in court.

Can't handle it

The answer from the law professor does not surprise Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen.

- I thought about it, she tells Sermitsiaq.

- I have considered reporting it to the police, but I can't even bring myself to do so, precisely because I have the feeling that it won't lead to anything.

- I would like to have some clearer laws around it, especially now that AI is becoming more and more available. But also in relation to how easy it is to create an entire website that easily lures money out of people, says Josepha Kûitse Kunak Thomsen.

Sermitsiaq has used the search engine whois.com to find out that the domain sosterneniviogaja.dk is owned by Jamal Ranj Hameed Rasul, who lives in Brøndby Strand near Copenhagen. According to the CVR register, Jamal Ranj Hameed Rasul runs the company The Fasion in the industry "retail footwear". When the company was established in 2023, it was called CloseEffect.

We have tried to get a comment from Jamal Ranj Hameed Rasul on the phone number that, according to Krak.dk, is linked to his address in Brøndby Strand, but the calls are not answered.