Wouldn't the core issue fall on the team for not being specific in their rules? it's common sense that if they want to launch a brand, they wouldn't want a logo based off of another company or even anything close, but this is bitcointalk. I've found that you have to freaking map out everything to make sure even the most ignorant would understand.
You have a lot of members from very poor areas who are going to use anything they can to make a buck, and not feel bad about it. In their minds, they did nothing wrong. Anytime anyone launches a contest, the rules have to be 100% clear and understandable to avoid this sort of thing for the contest.
The company should have done a better job in the selection process as well. They need to research all submissions to try and detect similarities in other brands and logos. Just my 2 cents.
Definitely poor organization of the event is at fault. Maybe next time have a specific software to be used so there will be no way to cheat. Logo maker is cheating in my opinion because ideas are already there, you will just adjust it to your liking, maybe use the style for inspiration but not the copy it altogether.