Episode 73: How safe is your creative work? Featuring Artemis North

Episode 73: How safe is your creative work? Featuring Artemis North

Release date: December 20

Focus: Digital security, creative ownership, and what happens when things go wrong

Featuring Artemis North

Hosts & contributors

Greg · Alessandra · Artemis North · Shadows Pub · Gretchen · Devin · Bailey · Melanie

This episode takes a more interview‑driven format following a serious real‑world security breach involving longtime Hive creator Artemis North. The conversation widens into an honest, practical discussion about creative ownership, account security, trust, recovery, and what creators can actually do to reduce risk—without panic or shame.

The group compares digital theft to physical break‑ins, discusses how older security habits can surface years later, and highlights why community support matters as much as technical safeguards. The episode closes with practical ideas for audits, password management, copyright basics, and platform awareness.

Creative work is personal identity, not just files or crypto
Security choices made years ago can still have consequences today
Being hacked is not a moral failure
Community support plays a real role in recovery
Ownership, access, and publishing rights are not the same thing
Blockchain, cloud storage, and local storage each have tradeoffs

Guest focus: account hijacking & recovery

Key insight:

“It felt like somebody broke into my house and rifled through my underwear drawer.”

Artemis shares how her Hive account was hijacked—twice—including a stealth change to her recovery account months earlier. While her crypto access was lost, her published creative work remains intact on the blockchain.

Notable moments

Recovery account changed months before the final takeover
Old saved passwords in Google may have been the weak link
Community support remained strong despite losing account access
Shifted creative focus to her long‑standing personal site

Takeaway:

What was taken was crypto—not identity, not voice, not community.

Creative direction & framing

Key insight:

“This is your digital creative life. You’ve got real world value invested in it.”

Alessandra guides the conversation toward creative ownership, emotional impact, and historical parallels—most memorably comparing Artemis’s experience to Prince walking away from his name.

Notable moments

Framed account loss as a contract and access issue, not a technology failure
Drew parallels to the artist formerly known as Prince
Proposed a collective “security audit hour” for creators
Highlighted how rebuilding can lead to better systems

Takeaway:

Sometimes identity isn’t lost—it’s reasserted elsewhere.

Producer & security practicalities

Key insight:

“You might already be in a data breach and not know it for years.”

Greg shares tools and personal experiences with hacked accounts, stressing that data exposure often happens long before it’s disclosed.

Notable moments

Introduced breach‑checking tool
Discussed password manager use
Shared example of idea theft among peers

Takeaway:

Awareness after the fact is common—ongoing checks matter.

Local storage & platform skepticism

Key insight:

“I don’t want to use a platform where someone else can hack into my data.”

Shadows recounts losing funds after a hacked Evernote account, which prompted a move to fully local note‑keeping systems.

Notable moments

Switched from Evernote to Obsidian for local control
Uses private, non‑remote cloud hardware
Acknowledged unavoidable exposure via iOS backups

Takeaway:

Control often means inconvenience—and tradeoffs.

Long‑term tech perspective

Key insight:

“Security today is like locking your door—even in a safe neighborhood.”

With decades of experience in educational tech, Gretchen emphasizes awareness over fear and shares a disturbing in‑home digital breach story.

Notable moments

Compared online security to physical home safety
Shared experience of account takeover by a trusted guest
Noted how fast scam sophistication is advancing

Takeaway:

Trust and vigilance must coexist.

Rights, redundancy & recovery

Key insight:

“If it’s attached to the work, you’ve asserted your copyright.”

Devin balances humor with practical advice, from redundant backups to basic copyright assertion.

Notable moments

Shared creative theft story involving stolen mixtapes
Described using multiple backups across platforms
Explained simple copyright protection steps
Discussed high‑value physical art theft (Banksy)

Takeaway:

Possession isn’t permission—rights matter.

Creative protection mindset

Key insight:

“My creative work feels more important than my physical possessions.”

Bailey talks about fear of exposure, cautious sharing, and tools that respect creator intent.

Notable moments

Described a full Google account takeover
Highlighted MuseScore’s permission controls
Expressed hesitation with open critique platforms

Takeaway:

Protection is emotional as well as technical.

Art legacy & visibility

Key insight:

“I’d be nervous putting work anywhere I don’t know everyone.”

Melanie reflects on older creative works resurfacing in unexpected places, including murals based on her photography.

Notable moments

Lost original Facebook account access
Discovered artwork used under different naming
Shared positive example of permission‑based public art

Takeaway:

Visibility without context can blur authorship.

Use a dedicated password manager
Avoid browser‑saved passwords
Perform regular security audits of old tools and accounts
Keep multiple backups in different locations
Assert copyright clearly on original works
Be mindful of what platforms truly control access vs ownership

Artemis North website

https://artemisnorth.com

 
Have I Been Pwned (data breach checker)

https://haveibeenpwned.com

 
MuseScore (music publishing with usage controls)

https://musescore.com

 
Bitwarden (password manager)

https://bitwarden.com

 
1Password

https://1password.com

 
Obsidian (local knowledge base)

https://obsidian.md

 
Creative Work Hour podcast

https://creativeworkhour.com

This episode isn’t about paranoia—it’s about realism. Creative work carries identity, trust, and history. Losing access hurts, but community, adaptability, and informed practices can carry creators forward.

If something has ever happened to your work—digital or physical—you are not alone. And you’re allowed to rebuild.

Listener question:

Have you ever had creative work stolen, compromised, or misused?

Share your story at https://creativeworkhour.com

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