Something didn’t feel right about her nephew’s obituary. Anne Marie Aikins couldn’t quite figure it out.
Kevin Patrick Krelove was a tall guy with a big heart and an even bigger hug. So when the 44-year-old chef from Barrie passed away this month after a tobogganing accident, his friends and family were devastated: “It was just completely unexpected and bizarre,” Aikins said.
The family was still coming to terms with their loss when, two days after he died on Feb. 7, a link to an obituary circulated among Krelove’s close friends and family. It was the first result on Google, according to Aikins.
A screenshot of Echovita’s obituary for Krelove appeared shortly after the funeral home shared details of his death, as noted by his family. The page was removed after relatives complained to the site.
Anne Marie Aikins
The website in question was called Echovita, and Aikins instantly sensed something wasn’t right. The page wasn’t affiliated with the funeral home and prominently displayed links for purchasing condolences – such as paying to light a virtual candle, plant a memorial tree or send flowers for the funeral.
“I thought, ‘Geez, even funeral homes are trying to raise money,’” Aikins, former chief spokesperson for Metrolinx, told the Star. “Your judgment can get blurred a bit because of the pain of losing somebody, especially in such a shocking way.. so I ignored (the warning signs).”
It wasn’t until later that evening that the family discovered the site had no connection to Krelove or his funeral home. They learned that his information had been copied without their permission or knowledge soon after the funeral home its own announcement.
By then, several people had already ordered flowers or paid to light candles on this imitation site, according to Aikins. The thought that someone exploited her deceased nephew’s personal information for profit angered her deeply.
“He’s young and it was such a stupid accident. That people would exploit that feels just so, so awful; it’s hard to put into words,” Aikins said. “It just compounds the tragedy that we’re experiencing and the grief.”
Kevin Patrick Krelove’s family was heartbroken by his passing following a tobogganing accident in February. Then they stumbled upon his information on an unfamiliar website.
Anne Marie Aikins
Initially, Aikins and her family believed they were dealing with fraud from this website and reported it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Experts say fraudulent “obituary piracy” schemes have become increasingly common in recent years due in part to advances in AI technology.
However, Echovita doesn’t seem to be violating any laws based on advice from lawyers and statements from the website itself.
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Echovita has never defrauded anyone,” a spokesperson for them told the Star while adding that its “business model complies with all applicable laws and does not contravene any regulation.”
Kevin Patrick Krelove’s family was heartbroken by his passing following a tobogganing accident in February. Then they stumbled upon his information on an unfamiliar website.
Anne Marie Aikins
Initially, Aikins and her family believed they were dealing with fraud from this website and reported it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Experts say fraudulent “obituary piracy” schemes have become increasingly common in recent years due in part to advances in AI technology.
However, Echovita doesn’t seem to be violating any laws based on advice from lawyers and statements from the website itself.
“Millions of users are thankful to Echovita for publishing death notices categorized by city while offering free service supported by exceptional customer care,” they mentioned via email.
Aikins stated none of these flower orders reached Krelove’s funeral service last Friday on time though according to Echovita only two flower orders were made-one being cancelled then refunded while another supposedly arrived at the service punctually as claimed by them.”A complaint from relatives led down removal actions taken against Echovitas’s post dedicated toward Kreloves case as well those who paid towards lighting virtual candles priced anywhere between $7 along with $24.”
Echovita describes itself simply stating how they’re merely “a Canadian organization centralizing publicly available obituaries enabling more efficient accessibility,” explains one representative succinctly saying “Our aim is ensuring public info remains accessible free-of-charge.” They perform this act partly through browsing web-based materials provided initially either newspapers sharing announcements related regarding individuals’ deaths alongside local funeral homes paraphrasing certain elements not covered under copyright before reposting some summaries onto their own platform thus utilizing such entries promoting various services offered online including floral arrangements candle-lightings tree planting initiatives etcetera.” This action caused distress amongst various families involved raising concerns over accuracy leading into critical reviews posted against them across platforms like BBB wherein one account detailed encountering flawed compositions regarding grandparental memorials resulting mistakes surrounding survivors listed inaccurately signifying living relatives mistakenly marked deceased creating immense embarrassment felt since others presumed these errors reflected poorly towards their late loved ones.” In response received apologetic remarks tackling any discrepancies further clarifying operations confirming legitimacy behind every transaction completed whether arrangements concerning delivery destinations meeting customers expectations except cases involving delays eventually refunding purchases back towards buyers.” “Yet despite efforts taken numerous controversies continued surfacing including 2021 lawsuits brought forth initiated around Service Corporation International(SCI) which operates over thousand recognized establishments accusing these aggregators scrapping unauthorized copyrighted material violating respective regulations stemming mainly focused issues observed pertaining factual inaccuracies present within rewritten versions showcased hence alleging significant damages incurred toward plaintiffs namely through lost business relations hindering goodwill subsequently tarnishing reputation facing ongoing suffering should operations persist unchanged moving forward,” reads parts outlined throughout documentation involved surrounding claims presented earlier during proceedings set occurring subsequent months approaching deadlines specified accordingly.”Source link
