In my job, Copyright Laws and Intellectual Property come up for discussion on almost a daily basis. As a Freelance Designer, I uphold and respect these laws even if it means I loose an account due to refusal to copy or mimic someone’s work. Why wouldn’t I? Copyright Laws protect my designs too and let’s face it, my designs are how I make a living. So in an effort to set the record straight, I have compiled a list of the most frequently misunderstood laws and commonly held false beliefs.

1. If it’s on the internet, it’s not copyrighted. Wrong. Every picture, article, song, video, and design is protected by copyright law. As a rule of thumb, if you would like to use an image you found on the internet, contact the author and get permission. If permission is not received, don’t use it.

2. If I can’t find the author of an article, I can use it. Nope. Anything that is created has an original author. In the digital age where people think anything on the net is fair game, it can be exceedingly difficult to track down where the article originated if it has been re-posted multiple times but, again, that doesn’t mean that the original author has given up his rights. Don’t publish anything that you don’t have permission to use. Read the rest of this entry »