As the Internet has grown, it’s become easier than ever to share images with friends and colleagues across various digital platforms. What a lot of people don’t realise however, is just how easy it is to breach copyright law when sharing images. For example, something as simple as finding an image from Google and sharing it on Facebook is actually breaking copyright law. Here’s our guide to help you stay on the right side of the law when you’re sharing on social platforms:
- Insert a credit line
- Use the ‘share’ button on 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß
- Buy the rights to use the image online Â
1. Insert a credit line
Simply sharing an image that you find online without any reference to the image source is a strict ‘no’. Firstly you need to figure out the source of the image. If it has a that allows it to be shared for free you will still need to insert a credit line that details the contributing party’s information, just as you see on the 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß site. For example: © Contributor’s name / 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß Stock Photo
Social media best practice calls for a credit line that links back to the site where you found the image. This way, you give the site and the photographer the credit they deserve and you know you haven’t broken any laws by sharing the content.
If it doesn’t have a creative commons license, a credit line alone won’t be enough and you need to do one of the below:
2. Use the ‘share’ button on 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß
We have a quick and easy way for you to share the great images you find on 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß with your social networks without breaching copyright. On the image page, you’ll find our ‘share’ button to the right-hand side, and from here you can select which social media channel you’d like to share the image on. The image will be shared equipped with watermark, credit line and link back to the image page, so you don’t have to worry about whether or not you’ve credited the image properly.
Learn in our great vlog:
3. Buy the rights to use an image online
If you don’t want to share a watermarked image or assign a credit line to the image, your best option is to buy the image under a license that enables use of the image online.
At 17³Ô¹ÏÔÚÏß, we’ve put together some popular pricing packages, so the one you’ll need is our ‘website’ license. This will enable you to use the image on your website or social media channels, knowing that you’re legally covered to use the image.
More great blogs that explore the world of social media:
How to increase engagement using images