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When publishing an image on the Internet, the user faces the risk of theft. Copyright infringement is illegal. If someone uses the picture without the knowledge, you can go to court and force the violator to remove the content. But occasionally, a problem is easier to prevent than to deal with its consequences.

There are several effective ways to protect photos online. Below, we describe the most popular methods. Following simple tips will help prevent content theft. Remember that almost all barriers can be bypassed. If someone needs your photo, nothing will stop them from misappropriating it.

Adding watermarks

Watermark pictures are the best way to prevent people from stealing them. The owner can add a small piece of text, a picture, or a logo to the image to verify their ownership. Users should follow the procedure with all photos posted on the network. This is especially true for content that is put up for sale.

It will play in your favor even if people decide to use your image along with a watermark. By the label on the photo, it will be easy to find out exactly who took the pictures. Watermarks are also a great way to promote images online.

You can remove the watermark, but the process will require significant time. It will be easier for an attacker to find another image on the Internet with no labels.

Even if the user has not formerly worked with watermarks, adding such a label will not be difficult. Now, many programs and services watermark entire batches of photos in just a few seconds.

The person who owns the photo should ensure that the watermark is not too intrusive and does not distract from the main details of the picture. For this, the programs support many settings. You can change the location of the stamp, its size, transparency, font, and other parameters.

Use of Barcodes

Digimarc is a popular service for applying invisible barcodes to digital photos. Digital noise is applied to the finished image, which will be unique and inherent only to your direction. A digital fingerprint on the picture allows you to track the movement of the image on the network after publication.

You can only protect photos for a fee. To digitally print 2,000 images, you must purchase the Professional Package for $119. The user will be notified if his picture starts to be used on the network.

The presence of such a print allows you to defend your copyright if you still need to go to court.

Don’t Post High-Resolution Files Online

Uploading high-resolution photos online is not a good idea. If someone gets such a picture, it will be tough for the photographer to prove his copyright. An exception may be stocks that request high-quality files, but only lower-resolution copies are put on public display.

Do not post pictures with a resolution of more than 1600 pixels. Lower-resolution images are enough for potential content buyers to see all the details.

Compress Photos before Uploading

Before publishing a photo on the network, reducing its size and quality is desirable. You can do this through the Photoshop application. To complete this, after processing the image, click on the “File” button, then “Export,” and select “Save for the Internet…”. The image quality will be reduced to 60%. At the same time, it won’t be easy to notice a decreased quality with the naked eye.

You can also compress images using Lightroom. You can set file size limits up to 250 KB when exporting photos. This quality is enough to get acquainted with the pictures. But hardly anyone wants to use it for its intended purpose.

Write Copyright in Metadata

You can change metadata using third-party software or directly through essential Windows tools. In them, you can write detailed information about the image, up to the distance at which the object is located. This method has some disadvantages. The metadata will be removed during the image compression when uploading data to social networks or other sites.

You can use one or all of the methods above to protect your images from online theft. At the same time, the watermark can be considered the most effective. If you place the watermark correctly, it will help promote your brand and to protect the photo.

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