Blog Copyright: 8 Do’s and Don’ts to Protect Your Content

Have you worked hard to create original content on a website or blog, only to have someone “borrow” it?

That’s not right!

Take time to review your blog: copyright is automatic, but it’s up to you to make sure that the right measures are in place to make compliance seamless.

Here are 8 Do’s and Don’ts, to help secure your blog’s content:

Copyright Do’s:

1.  DO:  Educate yourself about copyright.

Lots of people are confused about copyright.  But once you learn how copyright works, you’ll see that it is relatively easy to protect your individual blog with a few simple steps.

For the basic information you need, download our

2.  DO:  Take time to secure your content.

Once you learn the basics, it’s up to you to take the steps necessary to secure your content. A little planning now can save you some big headaches later.

If you haven’t already done so, post a copyright notice, provide an easy way for people to get permission to republish your content, and add duplicate-content detection to track down infringement.

3.  DO:  Add clear reuse information to your blog.

If you don’t let your readers know how to reuse your material, they’re more likely to “borrow” your work without attribution.

Make it easy for them to comply with your rules … take steps to make them more visible, and state your policy for permissions clearly and succinctly!  Remember, your readers can’t follow rules they can’t see or find.

4.  DO:  Respect the rights of fellow content owners.

Just as you’d expect other bloggers to respect your copyrights, they have a right to expect the same of you.

Always seek permission, give credit, and show respect for the creative work of others.  Using other’s photos?   Make sure you use copyright-approved resources for any images you use on your blog, too!

5.  DO:  Promote a copyright culture.

Some say that catching copyright infringers is like playing “Whack-a-Mole.”

Not so!  Countless copyright infringers are successfully challenged each month.

If you care about the right to profit from your original work, educate others about why that’s important, and help to create a copyright culture.

Copyright Don’ts:

6.  DON’T:  “Copy and paste” without permission.      

It’s so easy to “right click” and then copy and paste the perfect online excerpt to use for some other purpose.  Before you do, though, out of courtesy, check the reuse terms of the original content creator. After all, you’d expect the same consideration!

7.  DON’T:  Rely on a static © notice in your footer to do all the heavy lifting.

That teeny tiny copyright notice in your footer is easily overlooked, and doesn’t provide needed details for your readers.  The more visible your copyright notice, the more likely readers will reuse your work with permission.

8.  DON’T: Allow content theft to go unchallenged. 

Your blog content is valuable to others, and it’s up to you to determine how others should be allowed to reuse it.  Protect your hard work, and don’t stand for content theft, by using plagiarism detection tools and use a DMCA takedown notice if necessary, to get infringing content taken down.

The iCopyright Toolbar is a complete copyright protection system for online content that accomplishes all of these measures.  It makes it easy for readers to reuse your content with permission and detect content theft.  Learn more. 

Free Ebook:  The Blogger’s Guide to Copyright Protection

If you would like to learn more about how to copyright a blog, and what to do if your copyrights are infringed, you might be interested in our free e-book: :

Let us know if you have any other copyright questions, in the comments!