Copy protect images on website?

akumulatorakumulator
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I'm currently building a website that will have gallery pages to show artwork....



I want to make it more difficult for someone to download the images and then pass them off as their own. I'm not a fan of putting a copyright text or faded name on the image. I've seen flash websites with images and they're more difficult to download... except for snapshot of screen. How does the watermark plugin in photoshop work?



Any suggestions?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 27
    mr beardsleymr beardsley Posts: 365member
    Take a look at this site. I think they use javascript rollovers to prevent folks from downloading or linking to images.
  • Reply 2 of 27
    baumanbauman Posts: 1,248member
    It's still really easy to grab it from the source though.



    I know there are programs that generate images using html... frames and the like. I don't know what kind of quality or speed or whatnot to expect from them though.
  • Reply 3 of 27
    ibrowseibrowse Posts: 1,749member
    Years ago I was on some site with random funny pictures on it, and when I tried to save one of them a error dialog popped up saying something like "Nuh-uh, no right clicking" Making it a real pain in the ass to save any of them.
  • Reply 4 of 27
    ichiban_jayichiban_jay Posts: 660member
    but on macs you can just drag the picture onto the desktop. I have the right-click code if you truly want it. it won't protect you from everything, and just makes ppl mad they can't copy text. The best way to protect your pictures is just to put your name or some emblem on a hard to edit out area of the picture. Make sure the emblem goes covers some detail so someone can't easily photoshop it out. that's the best thing to do (i think)
  • Reply 5 of 27
    johnqjohnq Posts: 2,763member
    Besides you can just cobble the path from the page source, or via TCP stream. You can CURL the images via commandline, etc.
  • Reply 6 of 27
    akumulatorakumulator Posts: 1,111member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Ichiban_jay

    but on macs you can just drag the picture onto the desktop. I have the right-click code if you truly want it. it won't protect you from everything, and just makes ppl mad they can't copy text. The best way to protect your pictures is just to put your name or some emblem on a hard to edit out area of the picture. Make sure the emblem goes covers some detail so someone can't easily photoshop it out. that's the best thing to do (i think)



    Yeah, this may be the only real solution...but because they are images of art work I'd rather try and find a better way... I don't want to take anything away from the art by placing crap on the image.



    That's why I was thinking of Flash.... the person would at least have to do more than a simple right-click to get the image.
  • Reply 7 of 27
    ichiban_jayichiban_jay Posts: 660member
    flash can work very well, make a slideshow type thing. it does require alot of work to get the picture out. you would have to go into your cache pull the .swf out, then get a program that can pull the .swf file apart.
  • Reply 8 of 27
    akumulatorakumulator Posts: 1,111member
    Or a screenshot.....but yeah, I may go the Flash route. I just need to wait for my tax return to get it.
  • Reply 9 of 27
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    Can't you embed a text copyright notice into the metadata of the file. That would make it easy to see if your images were used on another web site.



    As for stopping someone from downloading in the first place... The only way to see your site is to download it. Therefore, there will always be ways to take images.
  • Reply 10 of 27
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    Late night, left field HTML hypothesis, but I wonder if you could...



    build image at appropriate size. create 2 new layers.

    layer 2 - apply masked watermark/text (this is the positive)

    layer 3 - create negative of watermark on an 'inverse overlay' layer

    at this point, the positive and negative should cancel so the composited image looks normal



    turn off the negative layer so the image with ugly watermark is left

    save this view (1 and 2) as the primary image name



    turn off the image layer and turn on the negative layer to see inverse watermark

    save this view (3) as a related image name

    (perhaps add a step of dicing the inverse image and saving each piece)



    embed the negative versions as background images in a carefully aligned table

    insert the positive versions into cells over top of the inverse bg img



    theoretically, (haven't tested this yet, might work better as rollover states)

    if the images register properly, you'll see perfectly normal images online



    drag images to desktop will get watermarked versions since they don't get the inverse bg img

    if you do go grab all the images in the page, it might be okay in HTML,

    but without the tables, perhaps a pain to reconstruct watermark free



    maybe this theory is more trouble than its worth, (flash may be more elegant), YMMV,

    but it just hit me, and these forums are great places to test fly ideas for willing trapshooters to hole



    pull!
  • Reply 11 of 27
    ebbyebby Posts: 3,110member
    Grab both images, add a little photoshop. Mix well and you got a good image.
  • Reply 12 of 27
    bartobarto Posts: 2,246member
    If you can see it, you can copy it. If you embed images in Flash, you can use Command-shift-4 to copy them. Most browsers ignore crappy Javascript commands now.



    Look, I'd love to help you except... that's right, I wouldn't help you because you are being a RIAA style fascist wannabe. Even if I wanted to help you though, I couldn't. There simply isn't such a thing as workable copy protection.



    Barto
  • Reply 13 of 27
    akumulatorakumulator Posts: 1,111member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Barto

    Look, I'd love to help you except... that's right, I wouldn't help you because you are being a RIAA style fascist wannabe. Even if I wanted to help you though, I couldn't. There simply isn't such a thing as workable copy protection.









    no, I don't care if people have images of my paintings.. for free or whatever. I just want it a little more difficult for some dumbass to take the images and post them elsewhere saying they're theirs...
  • Reply 14 of 27
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Ebby

    Grab both images, add a little photoshop. Mix well and you got a good image.



    sure.

    but the casual drag and drop would only net you the watermarked version.

    you'd at least be forcing people to go back and get the embedded image.



    there are some steganographic encryption methods that might further protect things

    but building key pairs into pictures seems impractical if the simpler deterrent works



    there isn't an easy way to prevent copying, but you could preset the watermark to deter bots and lazy users



    Photoshop's EXIF data might maintain info about your watermarked layers,

    but a copyright in the steganographic version should be able to prove its yours in court by 'revealing' the hidden copyright info
  • Reply 15 of 27
    bartobarto Posts: 2,246member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Akumulator

    no, I don't care if people have images of my paintings.. for free or whatever. I just want it a little more difficult for some dumbass to take the images and post them elsewhere saying they're theirs...



    I forgive you



    One problem with copy protection, in fact computers in general, is that it can't distinguish well between an honest user and a dumbass. Plus, while you CAN obscure the image somewhat, in the end any user can type command-shift-4 and take a screenshot of your picture.



    So basically it's a futile battle.



    Barto
  • Reply 16 of 27
    the pie manthe pie man Posts: 425member
    If you use XHTML/CSS to position the images as a background instead of inline, you can't right-click or drag and drop. Then if you password protect the directory which contains the images on your server, the person can't look up the http address of the image (from your source) and directly type that url in. The only way someone could get the image would be a screenshot unless I am mistaken.



    Flash would work too of course, but might take more effort if you aren't as familiar with flash...
  • Reply 17 of 27
    baumanbauman Posts: 1,248member
    Here are two little apps that might help you:



    IMGCarver - splits an image up and then places it into frames.



    That's Not a Picture actually converts the image into an intricate series of tables with background colors generating the original image.
  • Reply 18 of 27
    scarecrowscarecrow Posts: 148member
    Pie Man,



    Good in theory.. but with browsers like Firefox, you can right click even a background image, and download it.











    Basically, if you want to protect something, dont put it on the web. Thats it, in a nutshell. Because if you can see it on the screen, you can steal it. No matter what.
  • Reply 19 of 27
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by bauman

    Here are two little apps that might help you:



    IMGCarver - splits an image up and then places it into frames.



    That's Not a Picture actually converts the image into an intricate series of tables with background colors generating the original image.



    those bastards must be reading my mind... and time travelling back to implement it before I posted the idea

    I should get... um... royalties, yeah, that's it.

    But I'll trade my percentage for the secrets of their mind reading and time travel.



    some consolation that my late night left field idea wasn't as left field as I thought



    still not an ideal solution, but if other folks are coding apps to try and address this method,

    it is validating, in a parallel development proof of concept kind of way
  • Reply 20 of 27
    giaguaragiaguara Posts: 2,724member
    the only foolproof ways:



    small pics. enpugh low quality.



    AND stamps or website address on each picture on the way that they cant cut the pic to take it out to use it on anything else.





    copy protections etc dont work. even flash - jsut take a screenshot and use that. and right click disable is just for windows users.



    unless the pic is really low quality and small or lacks the "stamp", it's not protected.





    screenshots and source do a lot.
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