Protecting your images and creative work online

When you take a photo, draw an illustration or write a post, you usually own the copyright in it from the moment it exists. That is true whether you post it to a portfolio, a social network or nowhere at all. The harder part is knowing what that ownership lets you do when someone copies your work, and what you should do now to make that easier later.

This guide focuses on US law, since much of the internet runs through US-based platforms. Other countries follow broadly similar principles under international treaties, but details differ.

What copyright covers

Copyright protects original creative expression: photographs, artwork, writing, music, video and software. It does not protect ideas, facts, short phrases, names or a general style. If you photograph a sunset over a pier, nobody can copy your photo, but anyone can stand on the same pier and take their own.

Ownership arises automatically. You do not need to add the © symbol, although it does no harm and reminds people the work is not free to use. In the US, protection for an individual creator lasts for their lifetime plus 70 years.

There are two common exceptions to "you made it, you own it." Work made as an employee within the scope of your job usually belongs to your employer. And if you signed a contract assigning rights, for example to a client or a stock agency, the contract decides.

What platforms can do with your posts

When you upload to a social network, you typically keep the copyright but grant the platform a broad license to host, display, adapt and distribute the content on its service. Read the terms before posting work you plan to sell or license elsewhere, especially any clause about using content for advertising or for training automated systems. You can only grant rights you have, so do not post images of other people's work as if they were yours.

Simple habits that help later

Most copyright disputes come down to evidence. A few habits make your position much stronger:

• Keep your original files, ideally the full-resolution versions with their original metadata. A thief usually has only the compressed web copy.
• Save drafts, sketches and RAW files. They show the work's development.
• Add a short credit line or caption with your name or handle on published images.
• Put your name, or your pen name, and contact details in the file's metadata. Many cameras and editing apps do this automatically once set up.
• Post lower-resolution versions publicly and keep the high-resolution files for paying clients.

Should you register?

Registration with the US Copyright Office is optional, but it matters in two ways. For works first published in the United States, you generally have to register before you can file a copyright infringement lawsuit. And registering either before the infringement starts or within three months of first publication makes statutory damages and attorney's fees available. Without that, you are usually limited to proving actual losses, which can be small for a single image.

The Copyright Office accepts online applications and offers group options for photographers and for short online writings, which makes registering many works cheaper. Fees and group rules change, so check the Office's current fee schedule. If you regularly sell or license images, registering your best work in batches is often worth the cost.

Finding copies of your work

Reverse image search is the quickest way to check where your images appear. Run your most popular or most valuable images through two different reverse image search engines every few months. For writing, search for a distinctive sentence in quotation marks.

When you find a copy, first decide whether it is a problem. Someone sharing your post with credit, a news outlet quoting a short passage, or a review using a thumbnail may fall under fair use, which allows limited use for purposes like commentary, criticism, news reporting and teaching. Fair use is judged case by case, so a credit alone does not make a copy lawful, and missing credit does not automatically make it infringement.

Getting a copy taken down

For most cases, a takedown is faster than any legal route.

1. Take screenshots of the copy, with the URL and date visible.
2. Ask politely. Many copies come from people who did not know they needed permission. A short message asking for credit, a fee or removal resolves a surprising number of cases.
3. If that fails, use the platform's copyright report form. Platforms and web hosts in the US respond to notices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to keep their legal safe harbor.
4. For a standalone website, find its host with a domain lookup tool and send the notice to the host's abuse or DMCA contact.

A valid DMCA notice needs to identify your original work, identify the copy and where it is, give your contact details, and include statements that you believe in good faith the use is not authorized and that the notice is accurate, under penalty of perjury, along with your physical or electronic signature. Platform forms prompt you for each piece.

The person who posted the copy can send a counter-notice. If they do, the platform may restore the material unless you start a lawsuit within a short window. Never send a notice for work you do not own or for use you know is fair; false notices can carry liability.

When the copy is part of something bigger

If someone is selling your work, using it in advertising, or has built an account impersonating you, the stakes are higher. Report impersonation separately using the platform's impersonation form. For commercial infringement, the Copyright Claims Board offers a lower-cost US small-claims process for disputes of limited value, and an intellectual-property lawyer can advise on demand letters and settlements.

Common questions

This guide explains general principles of US copyright law for people who publish their own work online. It is not legal advice. For a dispute involving money, a contract or a business, talk to an intellectual-property lawyer.