Getty Images Unsubstantiated demands for payment Internet, Internet

To Photo Agent: Getty Images has claimed that they represent some of David P's  images in a royalty fee arrangement. I have a friend who has a website which Getty Images claims displays a photo covered by the royalty arrangement they claim to have with Mr. "P". Can you confirm that Mr. "P" does in-fact have a royalty arrangement with Getty Images?

Background:

Recently a friend of mine was contacted, by email, by a third-party that claimed to be a collection agency working for Getty Images. However, the third-party provided no proof of any agency relationship with Getty Images. This
third-party requested credit card information or electronic check information to satisfy in the amount demanded to satisfy Gettys claim for the unauthorized use of a Getty Images photo. I wrote a letter to the company claiming to represent Getty images, my letter stated in part:

"Your email did not include a representation of the photo which you claim violated the Getty Images royalty arrangement. My website has had three different web-designers and the photos on the website have been contributed by several sources (including professional wedding photographers).

Each of the sources has claimed that the photos used were their own, or, in the case of the web-designers, it was claimed the photos were in the public domain.

I dont believe I can be held responsible if someone else has used a Getty Image and has lied to me about their authority to use the photo.

Your email requests payment by providing you with credit card information, or electronic banking information. I will not provide any information about credit cards or bank accounts in response to any email claiming to be an agent of any firm and demanding payment for some alleged action. Your email has all the earmarks of a phishing scam.
Until I receive provable evidence that I have used a Getty Images photo without authorization, and until I receive provable evidence that you are in fact an agent of Getty Images and that you are authorized to collect for Getty Images, I will assume you are attempting to perpetrate some sort of fraud.

If you contact me again please provide the documentation necessary to substantiate your claims, otherwise I will regard your communications as an attempt to defraud and harass and your communications will be ignored."

Not long after my friend was contacted by this third party, I contacted Getty Images using phone numbers listed on the Getty Images website (to avoid being misled into calling co-conspirators of the third-party collector. When I
got to the proper department at Getty Images, the Getty Images representative asked me for a file number. The representative then named the third-party firm that had been in contact with my friend and she confirmed that Getty Images has hired the firm to collect royalty payments for Getty Images.

I asked the Getty Images representative if they could please provide my friend with evidence that Getty Images has a royalty arrangement with the artist that created the image. And, the Getty Images representative said, It is your
friends responsibility to prove she has the right to use the photograph. Asked for proof of the royalty arrangement and she again said, It is your friends responsibility to prove she has the right to use the photograph. I said, well
then, I guess you have a pretty good scam going. Good bye.