There’s something very important that I want to talk to you about today because it could end up costing you big, even if you make this mistake by accident.
See, U.S. copyright law is extremely strict. The penalties for using copyrighted material are harsh. In fact, you could be fined up to $150,000 for one single use of a photograph you don’t have the right to use! I know i sounds crazy, but it’s true.
And that is for one single use. If you use more than one photo, or if you use a single photo for more than one thing you could be on the hook for even more money.
Even if you manage to settle out of court, you could en up paying hundreds of dollars, even thousands, for a single photo that you could have bought legally for a buck or two.
Trust me, using photos illegally isn’t worth the potential trouble you could face.
“Oh, but how could the original photographer possibly find out I’m using their picture on my tiny little blog?” you might be thinking.
But there are services photographers can use that will constantly scour the internet on an automated basis, running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, just looking for illegal use of their photos so they can seek damages.
In fact, some photographers even make a living off nothing but suing people for using their photos illegally and lawyers that specialize in helping them do just that.
Okay, I get it. It sounds insane to think that people are making their entire living just by posting pictures online and waiting for other people to steal them, but it’s honestly true, and it could end up costing you big time.
Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to get stock photos without risking these huge fines, which are basically extortion. (Either pay, or spend thousands of dollars on lawyers and spend hours of your time fighting it in court.
Over the next few days, we are going to be talking about the right and wrong ways to get awesome photos for your projects LEGALLY.
No more worrying about having a photographer and his or her lawyer coming after you.
No more worrying about losing your domain name or hosting because a photographer files a cease an desist order against you.
Just legal photos you can use pretty much any way you want, without spending a fortune.
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