Is it legal to use images from other websites and place them on your own site?

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Is it legal to use images from other websites and place them on your own site?

Asked on June 23, 2015 under Business Law, California

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 8 years ago | Contributor

It is only legal if those images are in the public domain; but the vast majority of images on the web are not in the public domain. (Usually there will be some indication on the site if its content is public domain.) If it's not in the public domain, there will be someone (often but not always the site owner; the site owner may be licensing the image[s] from someone else) who owns the copyright (and possibly also trademark) in the image, and using their image violates their intellectual property. If you do that, you coudl be subject to a lawsuit.


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