Is it illegal for a company to steal a website layout when the website was hosted on Webflow and how did the new company get access to my files without my permission?

Copying your Webflow site layout without permission may constitute copyright infringement, and access to your Webflow files without authorization suggests a possible security breach or rights misuse.

1. Copyright Protection of Web Design

• Website layouts are generally protected under copyright law as original works of authorship, particularly if they involve unique design elements, structure, and content.
• If a company has copied your Webflow-hosted layout without permission, they may be infringing your copyright—even if you haven’t formally registered it in the U.S. (registration is, however, required for litigation).
• Webflow doesn’t publicly expose your source files (such as CMS content or project files), so reproduction of your layout usually requires direct manual copying or scraping.

2. Common Ways Someone Might Copy Your Layout

• Manual Duplication: They may have viewed your website and mimicked the design by recreating it in Webflow or another platform.
• Template Misuse: If your design is based on a Webflow template, and both parties licensed the same one, the similarity might be coincidental but legally permissible.
• File Access or Export: If your site's code was exported, the exported HTML, CSS, and JS are easily copyable by anyone with access.
• Team Member Leak: Someone with Editor, Designer, or Admin access to your Webflow project might have exported or shared the project content.
• Email/Link Sharing: If you shared a read-only project link, collaborators could have manually recreated the site.

3. How Could They Get Access Without Permission?

• Webflow Projects Aren’t Publicly Accessible: Project files are secure unless you invite someone directly, export the code, or share a cloneable project.
• Access paths include:
• Shared Designer access or Editor invites
• Read-only links that were misused
• Past employees, contractors, or collaborators using their access inappropriately
• Exporting your site code and storing it somewhere accessible to others
• Security breaches on Webflow are highly unlikely, so unauthorized access typically involves users you’ve shared access or files with.

4. What You Can Do

• Verify Your Webflow Team: Check your project’s Team Members under Project Settings → Members and revoke any suspicious access.
• Change Your Password: If you suspect a breach, reset your Webflow account password immediately.
• Monitor Read-Only Links: Revoke or disable any read-only links that may have been shared publicly.
• Send a DMCA Notice: If someone copied your site, file a DMCA takedown request to their host or domain registrar.
• Collect Evidence: Use time-stamped screenshots, domain records, and Webflow project history to prove original authorship.
• Legal Follow-up: Consult a copyright attorney if the copying impacts your business or brand reputation.

Summary

If a company copied your Webflow site layout, this may be copyright infringement, and if they accessed your project files, it likely happened through legitimate (but unauthorized) sharing of team access, exports, or links. Check your Webflow access settings, disable shared links, and consider legal action if damage has occurred.