Has your organisation received a letter of demand alleging that the organisation has infringed another organisation’s copyright? If you have, you’re not alone.
Not-for-profit Law’s Advice team has seen a rise in not-for-profits receiving formulaic demand letters from third-party organisations, which act like debt collectors. These demand letters typically make the following assertions:
- Your organisation has used an image without the proper licence from the owner of the image
- Making the requested payment (often amounting to several hundred dollars) is the only way to resolve the issue, and
- Unless you respond within a certain timeframe, the matter may be referred to the debt collector organisation’s lawyers
If this sounds familiar, you're probably wondering whether the letter is a legitimate demand or a scam, and whether you should pay the requested amount. As a starting point, it is important to know that these letters can be legitimate (and the Australian Government website Scamwatch can help you stay alert to warning signs for scams), so you should not ignore them. You should promptly seek legal advice on how best to respond. But what else do you need to be aware of?
What the law says about using images from the internet
Copyright, a form of intellectual property (IP), protects a wide range of original creations as soon as they are put into a material form. This includes artistic works such as images, logos, photographs, and computer-generated designs. Generally, the copyright owner is the creator of that material, but there are exceptions to this.
To use works like photographs (or other images) which you do not own – such as by publishing them on your website, printing them on a flyer, or copying them into a newsletter email – you need the copyright owner’s specific permission (called a licence). Without obtaining this permission, any unlicensed use would be a breach of copyright.
Key takeaway
Always take care not to infringe someone else’s IP – even if the infringement is not intentional. Using someone else's IP without permission constitutes infringement, regardless of intent. We recommend you audit all images currently on your website, social media, and in published documents like Annual Reports. In conducting this audit, consider: Where did these images originally come from? Do you own the images, or if not, do you have a licence to use these images?
If your organisation does not have the right to use an image, that image should be taken down immediately.
Where to find out more about intellectual property law
For more information on copyright and other intellectual property rights, explore our resources on Communications and advertising, where you can find our comprehensive Guide to Intellectual Property law. We also have resources on Setting up and managing a website and Legal issues for not-for-profits using social media, which raise important copyright considerations.
