Account is banned. I am speechless.

Envato Authors Author Hangout
1

Hello Envato and Authors

I am in a situation where I find no other option for me than trying to seek help here.

I will summarize this short and show you the e-mail I sent as a reply to Envato.

Friday night I bought a sound on AudioJungle for 2 dollars. Then I was somehow locked out of my account two hours later. I checked my bank, checked if anything was wrong. Nothing was. I have bought things on the market before, and this hasn’t been an issue before. I can add to this that I am an author on AudioJungle and sell my music on the page.

Now I get a response from the Envato team in the hopes of opening up my account, that unfortunately they will close it and I will never be able to open it again. End of discussion and without any explanation, anything regarding my tracks, money etc.

They referred to clause 55 which states that Envato will close down an account in which they suspect a payment can be a breach of the law or is of a legal risk. As I have a regular card, live in Denmark and have a regular bank, I find this impossible to be true.

Here is my response:

Hello Gerardo and the Envato team.

I am simply speechless, frustrated and extremely angry at the same time.

As I can read from your message which is more or less an automated reply, I have been banned because you suspect that I am somehow abusing my card or breaching a law within my country? Because of a sound I bought for 2 dollars this friday?

This is completely incomprehensible? I have in the last year bought three things on Envato Market. All of which had a price of either 1 or 2 dollars. I am from Denmark, use a regular card from the biggest bank in the North and have all my information correctly stated. In which way have I done anything wrong in this case?

How this can escalate so quickly and without any warning from you guys is simply a let-down for the entire Envato community and all the authors within. I have spent COUNTLESS hours of producing music, getting rejections, looking for feedback, growing my portfolio, and gaining costumers the last year and a half.
And because of a still unresolved case, I am now banned from the marketplace with no possibility of coming back, with no explanation whatsoever and not even a pay-back of the money on my account, a possibility to see my tracks and copy down all my information from them etc.

I simply can’t accept a link to your terms that really doesn’t explain my situation at all. And then have to know that “poof” - all my works are gone, and I am now left to myself to figure out what to do. This is disrespectful and betrayal in the highest class and should never be accepted within any big company.

As I stated in the beginning and in lack of better words and limited vocabulary, I am so sad and angry.

I really hope and expect that you will look into this case with more care and thoughtfulness.

Regards,

An “indifferent” author in the big ocean of fantastic authors out there.

Lukas

What is also extremely weird is that they state that they are refunding me for the payment. But as I checked my bank, I have not even been charged. Instead Envato paid me the 2 dollars twice. Which I also tried to explain in my very short mail correspondence with Envato. But all I got back was an automated answer that I was now banned.

Is this really fair? Am I really the one doing something wrong here? I simply don’t get it, but I would love to be enlightened. And sorry for being emotive, but this is a very big deal for me.

1 Like
2

We have almost the same case, all the authors in here are they safe too?

2 Likes
3

What happened to Envato? I am not without words, I am furious.

I’ve been here since Envato took its baby steps into the market and I’ve worked my (bib) out of my pants delivering quality music with diversity, I’ve sold a bunch of posters and Envato has made money.

Now, after a year of sweat, blood and tears, together with my son, I have to experience the most despicable closure of my son’s and friend’s account.

Lukas has worked hard to get in, he has put all his effort, time and soul into his musical work and was over the moon to be part of this community.

I no longer want to be a part of this. I cannot at all understand how you so easily, so carelessly, close an account without warning without the slightest investigation.

Lukas has honestly and fairly traded in your market with his completely legal card from the largest and most honorable bank in Scandinavia. He shopped for $2 and got his items. Subsequently, (Envato) deposits twice the same amount into his account, and then closes his account?

What? Who is violating security here? It’s not a healthy business, everyone here can see that. Lukas buys an item from Envato and afterwards they refund the same amount twice to his bank account and afterwards they close his Envato account. And tells him that he has violated security. It makes no sense…

It is completely and utterly beyond all rational thought, and your reply tells us that you have done nothing to find out what has been going on. You subsequently write to Lukas that you want to return the money you owe him? what? :roll_eyes:

I’m just so sad and upset … think I recommended this place to him. We’re struggling and then this?

Where is Envato, can you please fix this…It is beyond my comprehension!

Jonas Brandt - Envato Member for 16 YEARS

1 Like
4

Hello Envato!
We are here waiting for a response from you.

Are we not entitled to this, me as an Envato author for 16 years and a large part of your community, Lukas as a newbie hard worker? This is clearly a mistake … or what ever you want to call it…

Jonas///////

5

Well, Envato we’re still waiting?

In the meantime, there must be some of you good Authors out there reading this carefully who will wonder and give their opinion? :thinking:

Lukas and I would greatly appreciate that.

1 Like
6

Hi @brandtz,

Yes, I’ve been reading about your son’s situation and it’s pretty worrying indeed. I also buy items from time to time and, man, I wouldn’t want any “suspect” to cause my author account shut down.

I truly hope you people sort this out ASAP. :muscle:

2 Likes
7

Hi WormwoodMusic@

I really appreciate your message, thank you very much! … Yes, we are very frustrated, it all makes no sense.

And yes, you got a point… I am collector level 5 and have bought hundreds of products on Envato, I will stop immediately, I won’t spent a penny no more… It is too dangerous for my business…

8

Hi Lukas, I’m sorry you are going through this. I know a bit how you feel as i had a similar experience with ebay last year. I had been buying stuff on ebay for 15 years and then last year i tried selling something for the first time, and they banned me without giving me a reason why and no ability to rectify the situation.

Your situation is even worse because of the hard work you have put in, to build your music portfolio. I remember how proud you and your father were when you got your first approval.

I hope you can get this situation figured out.

2 Likes
9

Are/Were you using the same IP to access the Envato marketplace?

2 Likes
10

Hi @ki-themes
I was using the same computer, same IP adress, while logged into my own author account when purchasing the sound, and using the same card I am used to.

And what makes it even more weird is the fact that have not been charged but instead received the money from the transaction twice. And this has not been addressed or investigated even though I have tried to explain it:

It still remains in the unknown whether this is the actual problem, as it has not been specified by Envato in the mail.

1 Like
11

This is unbelievable… I really hope Envato will solve this!

2 Likes
12

Hi JLJ

Thank you for the kind words!
I am sorry for your situation with e-Bay as well and it does seem a lot a like.

But yes, it feels so empty considering how much time and effort you put into this and then without any hesitation or explanation your are exluded and banned.

1 Like
13

I really hope so too. I am yet in a waiting position which feels extremely dissatisfying. But I’ve done my part. I am definitely waiting for Envato to acknowledge some kind of wrong doing in this case.

1 Like
14

That’s really strange.

2 Likes
15

Hey @KingDog in your article, you said to reach out when the community struggles. I think you have a case here. Can you give us authors some explanation about this?

Having an author account terminated for no valid reason is unacceptable and very worrisome. What’s going on here?

5 Likes
16

Hello all,

Thanks to the authors who have commented, it means the world :fist:. The matter here is important to us all.

And now it’s time for today’s quote:

“I never forget that our community is not made up of numbers and spreadsheets. It’s made up of real people with real families”

We couldn’t "agree" more, we are right here… A family fighting to get Envato talking.

Lukas’s account has been deleted and the foundation is not present, at least from where we sit. Envato, seriously, isn’t it time for you to contact Lukas and tell him what’s going on?

17

This is the reason. According to the agreement, you can have only one exclusive, one non-exclusive account. If you’re using the same IP, same credit card on the same computer, the system may marked you as same person therefor you looked like you violated the terms.

1 Like
18

Heya. I have been looking into the matter. I still need to investigate a bit more. Thanks!

5 Likes
19

Hi Ki-Themes.

Thanks for the answer! I’m glad you’re also trying to figure out what’s going on, because this case is indeed very weird.

But what you are writing doesn’t really make me understand my case anymore. Because I as an author of course use the same computer everyday to make music, browse audiojungle, watch YouTube etc. This same computer, I have used this computer to buy a sound on AudioJungle. While logged in as an author. I can not see how this is not allowed?

I did not buy several things on the same date. I bought one thing a month ago and another thing two months ago on the same computer with the same card and with no issues at all, so if it actually happens to be the system marking me mistakenly, I don’t see any reason for me being banned.

And as Envato never charged my card but instead sent me the payment twice, I simply can’t comprehend any argument is correct in relation to referring to clause 55

1 Like
20

UPDATE:

Thank you to all authors for chipping in on this case.

It means a lot, and I simply am not giving up on something that I have dedicated so much time to for a "mistake", that is not being addressed, explained or in any way attempted to be solved.

From the long mail I sent, that you can read in my first post - I got a new reply from Envato - a stone cold and automated reply:

“Unfortunately like all companies we have a number of internal policies in place which, for business reasons we do not divulge. After reviewing your application for service, we are unfortunately unable to re-enable your account.”

Nothing of my mail is being read, no one is checking anything in the system, and no one has actually told me what I have done wrong. They only keep referring to clause 55, in which I still don’t see my case relate.

The only thing I can see is that I have two payments from Envato for the purchase that I still haven’t been charged for, and two replies that absolutely does not have anything to do with my specific case. There is nothing that implies that I have done anything wrong. Am I really the one making a mistake, as I can confirm that Envato mistakenly sent me money twice?

I have bought a sound as an author on a private network, with my trusted card from a trusted bank as I did in the past (as short as 1 month ago). I am sure that is not against the rules. Otherwise a lot of authors would be banned from this place.

I will still fight for my right, and I am definitely not letting this go, because I have not done anything wrong. If I have, I’ll be the first to admit it. But you can’t blame me for something without explaining what is actually the problem.

1 Like