Bloggers, Be Warned!

I got my fingers (and bank account) burned recently because of a stupid mistake.

I put up a post a month ago, and someone sent me an image they thought would work with it. This image was not watermarked (despite the NUJ recommendation to their members that this is best practice for professionals), nor was there any information in its properties to suggest its provenance. So I figured that, as it came from a trustworthy source, it was alright to use it. Wrong! The copyright owner found the image in use on my blog and quickly threatened to sue, contacted the General Synod office demanding my head on a platter and left a message on the church answering machine indicating my culpability. Having verified the origin of the image, and having had a weekend of harassment and threats, what was a poor vicar to do? Stump up is what, especially after a little research on the internet revealed that this particular copyright owner is very adept at suing people for this kind of thing, having done so many times before.

I did a quick check on some of the blogs I read and a few could well be in the wrong as I was.

So, what lessons have I learned?

1. Either only use photographs that you have taken yourself (which is my usual practice), are absolutely sure have no copyright issues, or have paid for.

2. Be aware that some people with intellectual property concerns will be using software like PicScout to keep track of whether their material is appearing on the web without their authorisation. Some image companies like Getty and Corbis seem to have teams of people scouring the internet for illegal use of their material. See here for  a forum of people receiving bills from these companies.

3. Realise that some individuals with legitimate concerns could be using this method to increase their income. They are quite within their rights of course and will prosecute to the full extent of the law. You will wind up in big trouble.

Here are 12 basic tips from Daily Blog Tips to help keep us right.

Finally, if you publish your own photographs on your blog and are concerned about other people using them without authorisation, you should watermark the images, or at least embed your details in the properties of the file. That way, anyone using your material will really have no excuse for using your material.

Comments

[Allan]

Our minister got 'stung' a couple of months ago for the same thing...

[robbio]

Hmmm... very intersting. Looking at my blog, I see that the only pictures I used that I hadn't taken were three pictures of products for sale. Whilst I'm certain I wouldn't get in trouble for using these images (as it is free advertising for them), I removed them just to be on the safe side. Thanks for the heads up!

[John Smulo]

Tough issue. I tend to only use stock photos that I pay for. I hate having to spend the $$ on this. But I get pictures I like and I don't have to worry about the liability issues. There's some free stock photos out there, but most are sold for a relatively inexpensive price.

I'm really sorry that you've been threatened with being sued over this. It seems that in an age where access to pictures is so easy--particularly through using Google's image search--that picture owners should be required to use some kind of due diligence to let others know that pictures have copy write. But that is tough as well, as once they're up on a site and can be easily discovered, they can wind up anywhere.

[Chris Hamer-Hodges]

Some copyright owners are abusing their rights and threatening to sue prematurely.

The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (c. 48) states:
"97.—(1) Where in an action for infringement of copyright it is shown that at the time of the infringement the defendant did not know, and
had no reason to believe, that copyright subsisted in the work to which the action relates, the plaintiff is not entitled to damages
against him, but without prejudice to any other remedy."

So if you made an honest mistake and removed the image as soon as you were notified, you are not liable under UK law.

The best thing to do is to is to dispute the charges by recorded delivery. That way they cannot pass the claim onto a debt collection agency.

Also, although companies like Getty have sent out thousands of letters threatening legal action, they have not (as yet) ever taken anyone to court.

Having said all that, it's always best to use images that are genuinely free or that you have paid for.