Before we get down to the actual business of what to do when there is unauthorised use, lets look at ways to prevent the unauthorised use in the first place.
In terms of websites, you could implement one or more of the following deterrents:
- Use a copyright notice – although not required under Australian copyright law, it is always a good idea to include this as an “in your face” reminder that the work is protected by copyright law.
- Define what is allowed and not allowed – a statement (or somthing similar) could be included in an obvious place on your webiste which clearly states what is and is not covered by copyright on your site and what use is allowed or not allowed of the copyright material.
- Terms and Conditions – include a “terms and conditions” on your site which makes references to copyright material.
- Technological Protection – these are measures which can be taken during the setup or update phase of your site and could include things such as disabling your right click menu, including a transparent overlay on any images, password protected areas, viewable only documents (such as PDF).
- Electronic Rights Management – a more costly and involved technqiue which allows the website owner to track the use of material from the site.
If, after implementing some or all of these measures, there is still unauthorised use of your material, the process would be as follows:
- Obtain Advice - speak to a lawyer or some other equally qualified person to determine where you stand from a legal viewpoint and what legal options currently apply.
- Decide what you ultimately want – this may inlcude deciding what restitution you may, if you want an apology or if return of your material is satisfactory.
- Contact the Person – contact the person who has “stolen” your work and oultine exactly what offence they have committed, what you want them to do and what you are able and willing to do about it.
- Court Action – one would hope that it never comes to this, but if you don’t get satisfaction from merely contacting the infringer and you feel strongly enough, then court action will probably be the way to go.
Something to bear in mind about this process would be be that you may want to contact the infringer first (before any legal involvement)….you may be able to resolve the issue without the need for costly legal advice!
Here’s hoping it never happens….
Amanda
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