Abiding by the Law
It is good practice for WWW authors to be aware of the
relevant laws and the regulations
applicable to the Web and to abide by them.
CopyrightCopyright does apply to WWW pages. Most of the text, graphics and other information you'll find on the Internet is copyrighted. The person or company that created that work (whether it's a book, picture, song or home page) owns it and has the exclusive right to redistribute it. Copying someone's copyrighted information to your home page without permission can get you sued. How do you know if something is copyrighted? Unless it says otherwise, it probably is copyrighted. The moment someone creates an original writing, piece of music, a home page, movie files, graphics, photographs, computer programs, or other material, it is copyrighted automatically. Copyrights extend to
e-mail messages, text files, computer programs, images, Web pages and
database files. In general, if you do any of the following, you may be violating someone's copyright:
The default is that copyright belongs to the author/publisher. Basically, the copyright of any material on a Web page belongs to the author/publisher or the originating institution. There are two exceptions:
How does Copyright work? The first person to create an image holds the copyright. This is non-negotiable. If you create it, it is automatically copyrighted to you. If you did not create it, the copyright belongs to the one who did. It is not OK to take the image that was created by someone else and manipulate it with your own colors, adding your own graphics, changing the size and position. It has now become a derivative of the original image and it is in direct violation of copyright laws. But what about these sites that offer FREE bullets, buttons and graphics for web page designers to use and they claim that the images are all original art? Every artist, writer, composer or programmer has the right to allow their creations to be used in the method they stipulate. If the creator places something original on the web and allows you to use it but lays down guidelines for this use, the guidelines then become PART of the copyright. If they request you use a logo graphic with a link to a specific URL, that is part of the copyright - to use their creations without using the logo graphic is in direct copyright infringement. By the way, this form of graphic sharing is often referred to on the net as "linkware". It is for you to use, but a link is required. Be sure to give the credit to each creator ON THE PAGE OF USE. Be sure the link is correct. This is compliance. Finally, most artists, composers, and programmers are aware that putting a copyright notation on their websites is pretty standard. Look for these notations usually in small print on the bottom of each page. The symbol © and date sum it up very well. But remember, it is not necessary for a web page to have any indication of copyright displayed for the images, programming, writing, etc. to be copyrighted. It is a given. Your Web pages and creations are your property (or your institution's) unless you give them away.
LibelYou can also find yourself in a lawyer's crosshairs if you publish something about a person that is false and hurts their reputation. Libel is the result of an untrue statement that damages a person's (or even a company's) good name. Even if you didn't
know your statement was false, you could be liable if the injured person is
not considered a "public figure". If the person is a public figure, you
could be liable if you make the false statement with reckless disregard for
the truth. Don't say anything to harm the reputation of others.
TrademarksA trademark is a brand name, logo or slogan used by an organization to distinguish its products from others. For example, America Online and Sony are trademarks. You need to be careful when using someone else's logo or trademark -- you'll need to get permission if your use might, as the lawyers say, dilute the value of the mark. Companies are very protective about their logos and trademarks and tend to be particular in how they are used. (For example, if you create a home page telling your bad experiences at a certain restaurant, you might hear from their lawyers.) It's OK to create a fan page talking about your favorite TV show, restaurant or whatever -- but you generally can't cut and paste the logo or characters pictures' onto your page, even if you have only good things to say about them.
PrivacyPrivacy is the right to be left alone from unwanted publicity. Be careful, when creating your web site, not to violate anyone's right to privacy. Posting someone's private writings, for instance a diary, could violate their privacy. It's called publication of private facts. This can occur if you publish information that's true but not newsworthy. If you want to use a photograph of people on your home page, you need both the permission of the photographer (who owns the copyright) and the people in the photograph (for privacy reasons). People, particularly famous people, can prevent you from using their images or name to promote something that they didn't authorize. That's called appropriation or right of publicity. Whenever you use the name or image of a person on your web page, you need to consider whether you're violating their privacy. Be aware that personal information is protected by legislation. You should obtain permission before including personal information or a photograph.
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