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Can I use images sourced from Google on my blogs?

by Ethan Chong
25 replies
Okay, I know there are public domain images out there and stock photos that needs to be bought.

But I intend to use images sourced from Google to accompany some of my articles.

Is this method practical? I'm not going to edit or change any of the pictures and if needed, I will state the image source and provide a link back to the original image.
#blogs #google #images #sourced
  • Profile picture of the author kpmedia
    "Google" doesn't own the image.
    So no.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kecia
    You need to be very careful using images straight from Google. Unless they are free to use under Creative Commons, you can be in serious trouble for using an image without permission. It's best to go through other sources for finding images for your sites.

    Such as this one: http://search.creativecommons.org/
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  • Profile picture of the author veekay31
    Use the advanced google image search option and select the filer option that allows you to modify images and use for commercial use. Now your search will give you images that you can commercially use & even modify.
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  • Profile picture of the author WebMeUp
    Originally Posted by Ethan Chong View Post

    But I intend to use images sourced from Google to accompany some of my articles.
    Is this method practical?
    The point is that if you decide to use images taken from Google image search results, you can get into trouble. Note that if you use an image that officially belongs to someone without their permission, it will be the case of copyright infringement!

    But there are lots of great platforms that offer hundreds of thousands of free public domain and royalty free images. Among them are Flickr: The Commons, Stock Exchange, Photopedia, Wikimedia Commons, etc.

    You may also try to get some free images Google Image Search. All you need to do is that tweak the search settings as it's described here.

    Also, make sure that you:
    • check the source of any image you are going to use and make sure that a website has an authority and unique content (if that a low-quality site, images on could be stolen as well);
    • always provide a full credit and a link back for any image or photo you download from the Internet. Even if it is marked as free or you have purchased it.
    Thus you will avoid any negative issues.

    Hope you find this info useful.
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  • Profile picture of the author SunilTanna
    You're asking for trouble if you do that. A copyright holder will sooner or later find you. if you're lucky they will get your site taken down with a DMCA complaint. Or they might demand money. or they might just sue.

    You may find this article helpful eBook & Internet Publishing News»Blog Archive » Legal Copyright-Safe Images for Your Website or Blog
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  • Profile picture of the author Scott Skinner
    First off, I'm not a lawyer, however, I would think that if the photo linked back to the original source, the owner would not have a problem. But then, if you emailed them and asked permission and they said yes, you'd be covered. Just my opinion.
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    • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
      Originally Posted by Scott Skinner View Post

      First off, I'm not a lawyer, however, I would think that if the photo linked back to the original source, the owner would not have a problem. But then, if you emailed them and asked permission and they said yes, you'd be covered. Just my opinion.
      Linking back to the source does nothing to protect against copyright violations, neither does giving credit to the source. YouTube is forced to take down videos all the time, even when a source credit is given.

      When I was running a blog a few years ago, every once in a while I'd find someone used my entire post on their website. Yes, they linked back to me but they were essentially getting content for free. I sent them a notice to take the content down (luckily they all complied).
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    • Profile picture of the author cbpayne
      Originally Posted by Scott Skinner View Post

      I would think that if the photo linked back to the original source, the owner would not have a problem. .
      Bullshit. I got two sites taken down by there hosts last month who stole my images. I have a problem with it.
      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      No one cares man.. use anything you want and if they ask you to take it down.. take it down. What are they going to do.. sue you.. HA.. empty treats even on a GRAND scale.
      I don't ask them to take them down. I get the host to take the site down and/or get Google to remove them via a DMCA.
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  • Profile picture of the author Moneymaker2012
    Mostly of the images that appear on google images don't have any ownership thing and anyone can freely use them, but some of them do have a copyright protected, so you need to make sure what you are going to choose from there.
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  • Profile picture of the author goguy
    The images are hosted on a particular website and are not owned by google, you can check the source website to see if they prevent the use, although many don't have such restrictions.
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    • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
      Originally Posted by goguy View Post

      The images are hosted on a particular website and are not owned by google, you can check the source website to see if they prevent the use, although many don't have such restrictions.
      A website doesn't have to spell out specific restrictions for it to be illegal to use the images on the website. Once a person takes a picture, the image copyright belongs to him/her by default.
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  • Profile picture of the author GuruGazette
    If I find your blog articles on Google then it's ok if I just take them and use them right?

    No.

    Images belong to someone and Google is not a someone.
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  • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
    No! You must get permission from the copyright holder, and google does not own the copyrights. Using images without permission is not only unethical but illegal.

    There's another thread about a model suing for unauthorized use of images:
    http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...se-photos.html
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  • Profile picture of the author wayneh
    You have to be careful and check they are creative commons and comply with the terms.

    As a caution here is a link to a thread that discusses a model sueing a site for using her photo
    http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...se-photos.html
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  • Profile picture of the author Devin X
    Banned
    No, you cannot do this. There are free stock photo sites you can use as long as you contact the owner and give credit for the photo. Don't be lazy, do the work properly.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bluelotusrajeev
    Google shows the images from the web which is not copyright of Google, rather of the creators. It is clearly mentioned that some of the image may be copyrighted at the search.

    You need to ask the creator or the owner of image than only use that in your website. While ther are many free copyrighted images, use them.
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    • Profile picture of the author wtatlas
      Originally Posted by veekay31 View Post

      Use the advanced google image search option and select the filer option that allows you to modify images and use for commercial use. Now your search will give you images that you can commercially use & even modify.
      Not necessarily. This is direct from Google Support concerning using their filters...

      "Labeled for commercial reuse

      Your results will only include images labeled with a license that allows you to copy the image for commercial purposes, in ways specified in the license.

      Labeled for reuse with modification

      Your results will only include images labeled with a license that allows you to copy and modify the image in ways specified in the license.

      Labeled for commercial reuse with modification

      Your results will only include images labeled with a license that allows you to copy the image for commercial purposes and modify it in ways specified in the license.

      If you find images with the wrong usage rights in the search results, let us know by reporting them in the help forum.

      Before reusing content that you've found, you should verify that its license is legitimate and check the exact terms of reuse stated in the license. For example, most licenses require that you give credit to the image creator when reusing an image. Google has no way of knowing whether the license is legitimate, so we aren't making any representation that the content is actually or lawfully licensed."

      As can be seen from the sentence that I have emboldened, Google are not accepting any responsibility for the validity of any of the information that its image search returns, even if you use the advanced search features. The onus is still on the potential image user to check that the image is indeed free to use and the only way to do that is to check with the copyright holder. If you can't contact the copyright holder of an image that you want to use then find another image.
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  • Profile picture of the author brunopy
    Just use this search:

    Google Advanced Image Search

    And select redistributable images down there ...
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  • Profile picture of the author SuperKC
    No one cares man.. use anything you want and if they ask you to take it down.. take it down. What are they going to do.. sue you.. HA.. empty treats even on a GRAND scale.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mr Bill
      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      No one cares man..
      I would care if they were my photos you stole.

      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      ...What are they going to do.. sue you.. .
      Yep. Happens a lot. If you think it doesn't you're wrong.

      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      ...empty treats even on a GRAND scale.
      Not empty, people sue all the time, you know that. It's not hard to do a proper search for images that are free to use for commercial purposes. The link was posted above and it's one I use all the time. http://www.google.com/advanced_image_search You get far less images but at least you know they are (most likely) free to use. Plus there are tonnes of websites out there with lots of free images. It's really only a very lazy person who steals images off Google when for a few extra seconds work they can find legal images.
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    • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      No one cares man.. use anything you want and if they ask you to take it down.. take it down. What are they going to do.. sue you.. HA.. empty treats even on a GRAND scale.
      I would care very much if you stole something of mine. And people get sued all the time for stealing copyrighted work.

      If copyright holder lets web host know one of their users is stealing images, they can lose their website. I also believe google can terminate their Adsense account if they're using it as a revenue stream on a site that steals images.
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    • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
      Originally Posted by SuperKC View Post

      No one cares man.. use anything you want and if they ask you to take it down.. take it down. What are they going to do.. sue you.. HA.. empty treats even on a GRAND scale.
      Photograher just won a $1.6 million dollar judgment against company for stealing his images.

      Photographer Wins Big in Copyright Case, $1.6M Big

      Do you have $1.6 million to spare?
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  • Profile picture of the author Danny Cutts
    The fact you are asking shows that you already know the answer

    I am in the process of a dispute between Getty Images and logonerds.... Its a headache but if you look closely you can be ok :-) I have a lawyer that is fighting my case for me and it looks hopeful.

    Danny
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  • Profile picture of the author mgsmith
    It depends on who really own the photo. Google is not the one who uploaded them there.
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    Mike

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