Before using an image you did not create, verify the rights for that exact image and your intended use. A search result, public webpage, or credit line does not give you permission by itself. Look for a license or written permission, confirm the work is public domain under the law that applies, or assess whether a legal exception such as fair use covers your specific use. This guide focuses on U.S. copyright law; rules and exceptions differ by country, and other rights may apply even when copyright is cleared.
Start by identifying the image and the rights holder
Find the specific file you plan to publish, not merely a page that shows a similar image. Record its source page and file URL, and look for the creator, rights holder, and an image-specific rights statement. Do not assume that the person, company, or place depicted owns the copyright. A photographer generally owns copyright in a photograph they take, and the person pictured is not automatically its copyright owner.
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In the United States, qualifying original photographs and graphic art can be protected when they are fixed in a tangible form. Copyright includes rights such as reproduction and public display, including online display. Registration is not what creates the initial copyright. That is why an image being easy to download—or already appearing on another website—does not establish that you may reuse it.
- Identify the exact image and the page or collection where it appears.
- Find the rights statement for that image. A site’s general description may not cover third-party material on the site.
- Confirm who can grant permission and whether a license is attached to the work.
- Check other rights, including permissions for recognizable people, logos, and embedded content.
Choose a rights basis that covers your actual use
For an image you did not create, there are several possible routes. Their limits differ; none should be inferred just from the image’s location online.
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| Route | What to verify | Important limit |
|---|---|---|
| Direct permission or paid license | Who grants it; permitted uses and media; territory or duration if specified; commercial use; changes; attribution; and exclusions. | The permission covers only the rights and uses it actually grants. Keep the terms and evidence of permission. |
| Creative Commons license | The exact license and version attached to the image, plus its attribution, commercial-use, and adaptation conditions. | A CC license does not guarantee the licensor owns everything shown or that model and third-party rights are cleared. |
| Public domain | Why this particular work is public domain under the relevant country’s rules and facts. | A government website or old-looking image does not by itself establish public-domain status. |
| Fair use or another legal exception | The jurisdiction and the full context of your use, including purpose, the work, amount used, and market-related considerations as applicable. | There is no general percentage or pixel-size safe harbor. The answer is fact-specific. |
| Create or commission an image | Who will own the copyright or what license the contract grants, and whether additional permissions are needed. | Paying for a photo shoot does not necessarily transfer copyright. |
Why Google Images and other search results are not permission
Image search helps locate pictures; it does not grant a license to publish them. A rights filter can help narrow results, but it cannot replace checking the license attached to the individual asset. Follow the result to its original source, locate the rights information for the exact image, and confirm that the source is authorized to offer those rights. If you cannot verify a usable basis, ask the rights holder or choose a different image.
The same principle applies to images embedded on blogs, social posts, portfolios, news pages, and public websites. Visibility is not authorization. Nor does the fact that another site used an image prove that its use was licensed or lawful.
Read Creative Commons terms image by image
Creative Commons is a set of licenses, not a blanket label meaning “free for anything.” Check which CC license and version applies to the particular work and follow its conditions. Some licenses restrict commercial use or adaptations; others do not. Do not assume a credit format or permission granted under one CC license applies to another.
For example, the CC BY 3.0 US deed describes attribution information that may be required, including the creator and attribution parties, a copyright notice, a license notice, a disclaimer notice, and a link to the material. Use the requirements of the actual license attached to the image rather than copying a generic credit template.
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A CC label also is not a complete all-rights clearance. Creative Commons licenses grant copyright and similar rights within their scope; they do not warrant that the licensor owns the work, cleared third-party material, or obtained model releases. If an image includes recognizable people, artwork, logos, or other protected content, assess those issues separately.
Use fair use carefully; there is no magic amount
The U.S. Copyright Office says: “There are no legal rules permitting the use of a specific number of words, a certain number of musical notes, or percentage of a work.” Fair use depends on the circumstances of the particular use. Commentary, criticism, news reporting, and scholarly reports are examples named in the law, not automatic guarantees that every image use in those categories is fair.
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There is no general rule that using a small image, cropping it, using less than a stated percentage, giving credit, or making no money makes the use fair. Consider the purpose and context, the nature of the work, the amount and importance of what is used, and effects relevant to the work’s market, as applicable. The Copyright Office notes that ultimately only a federal court can determine whether a particular use qualifies. If the use matters commercially or the outcome is uncertain, seek permission or qualified legal advice rather than relying on a shortcut.
Check public-domain and government-hosted images
Public-domain status depends on the work and applicable jurisdiction. The U.S. Copyright Office states that works published in the United States before January 1, 1931 are currently in the public domain because copyright protection has expired. That is a time-sensitive U.S. cutoff, not a universal rule for works published elsewhere, works published later, or other countries. Verify the history and status of the particular work before relying on it.
Do not assume everything on a federal website is a government work. Federal pages can include third-party or otherwise restricted material; agency marks and logos may have separate restrictions. Check the specific image’s rights information and the relevant agency guidance. Likewise, the Copyright Office says it usually does not own rights in Library of Congress collection materials and does not grant or deny permission for most of them. Users must assess the rights information and obtain any necessary permissions independently.
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If you commission a photo, settle ownership in writing
Paying a photographer does not, on its own, mean copyright transfers to you. The Copyright Office says the photographer generally owns copyright in a commissioned photograph unless rights are transferred in a signed writing; work-made-for-hire rules may apply in defined circumstances. Before commissioning, make the contract clear about ownership or the license you receive, permitted channels and uses, modifications, duration, territory, and credit requirements.
Copyright is not the only issue. The contract, employment relationship, and rights involving people or third-party material can affect what you may publish. A subject’s appearance in the photograph does not make that person its copyright owner, but separate privacy or publicity concerns may still require attention.
Keep a usable record of your clearance
Save the image URL, source page, rights statement or license version, required attribution, permission correspondence, and the date you checked them. Keep a copy of the relevant terms when practical, since online pages can change. If permission is limited to particular channels, dates, or uses, note those limits alongside the asset so that a later reuse is checked separately.
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A screenshot of a rights page can help document what you saw, but it does not grant permission, prove the rights holder had authority, or replace the actual license and correspondence. Captures may also omit context or change what a page displays. Treat them as supplemental records, not legal clearance.
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If you need a webpage capture while documenting where an image or rights statement appeared, ScreenshotNeo can return a screenshot from one GET request. It is a website screenshot API and MCP server from Yorker Media, not an image-rights checker: capturing a page does not make its images lawful to reuse or prove you have permission. Its cookie/consent-banner handling, popup and chat-widget removal can also change what appears in the capture, so do not treat a cleaned capture as a complete or authoritative record of the original page.
The example below captures a public page to a WebP file. See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for request options and response behavior.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://example.com -o shot.webp- Cookie banners, newsletter popups, and chat widgets are removed before the shot; each of those steps can be turned off.
- Bot checks or CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits cost nothing. Response headers identify the page verdict and billing status.
- An MCP server gives AI agents tools for screenshots, page information, and PDF capture.
- The free plan includes 1,000 screenshots a month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 screenshots.
Try ScreenshotNeo for webpage captures, or sign up free for 1,000 screenshots a month with no card.
Common mistakes and what to do instead
- “I found it on Google, so I can use it.” Follow the result to the exact asset and verify a license, permission, public-domain basis, or applicable exception.
- “I credited the photographer.” Credit may be a license condition, but it does not itself grant permission. Obtain authorization or use an established legal basis.
- “It is a Creative Commons image, so commercial use is fine.” Check the exact license: not every CC license permits commercial use or adaptations, and third-party rights may remain.
- “It is on a government website, so it is public domain.” Check the individual image. Government pages can contain third-party material and restricted marks.
- “I paid for the shoot, so I own the photo.” Check the written contract for a transfer or a license broad enough for your planned use.
- “I only used a little, so it must be fair use.” There is no universal percentage or size rule. Assess the full facts or seek permission.
A practical pre-publication checklist
- Identify the exact image, original source, creator, and rights holder, to the extent established.
- Locate the image-specific license or rights statement; do not rely only on a search filter or hosting site’s general terms.
- Match the terms to your intended use, including commercial publication, modifications, attribution, media, duration, and territory where specified.
- Check for people, logos, artwork, and other content that may need separate clearance.
- Save the license or permission and the date checked. Record any limitations so they are respected on reuse.
- If no usable permission or public-domain basis is established, choose another image or request permission. Use fair use only after a context-specific assessment, not as a numeric shortcut.
This is general U.S.-centered information, not a legal determination about a particular image or use. Copyright exceptions, terms, moral rights, privacy and publicity rights, and enforcement vary by jurisdiction. For a high-value campaign, disputed ownership, or uncertain exception, obtain permission or consult a qualified copyright attorney.
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