Artistscope - Copy And Capture Safe Security For Images

Images and the Internet

ArtistScope develops software that protects the integrity of images displayed on the web and in other electronic media. The software offers workable solutions to creators of images who are concerned that images they post to the web can be stolen, copied, or corrupted illegally. By using a suite of ArtistScope's tools, or by selecting only one that suits your needs, content creators can ensure the integrity of their images is not compromised and that their intellectual property rights are maintained.

The software currently available under the ArtistScope umbrella include tools that will restrict a visitor's ability to copy and print images and page content from the web. In addition to these and other features, different tools in the available suite can be configured to provide access to authorized users only. Further information about the potential of the software is available here.

Why is protection necessary?

With the growing importance of e-commerce transactions and the ongoing need to ensure the artistic integrity of images, it is essential that images displayed on the web be protected from illegal copying and printing.

As the nature of the web means most websites are open to search spiders and 'grab' type applications, most website content is available to most users. This availability means images on the web are exposed in quite specific ways, such as those listed below. (Further information about these vulnerabilities is available by selecting the link.)

image piracy
bandwidth theft
print screen
screen capture
unauthorized linking
spider and grab utilities
inappropriate use of Internet Explorer 5.0
print quality
breach of copyright

Image piracy

Many artists have found images they have carefully and laboriously created before uploading to the web have been used on other websites either as direct copies or in collage material.

Some creators have found their images incorporated into corporate logos with only minimal alteration. Some have found their artworks advertised online for sale as prints. Others have had their work entered into art contests by complete strangers without their knowledge.

Any such action taken without the consent of the artist is obviously illegal. And without specific protection, the entire body of work by an artist can be downloaded to disk as fast as the user's Internet service will allow. In most cases this is as fast as the user can double-click on all the images.

Bandwidth Theft

Bandwidth theft is the term that describes the illegal linking to graphic images on another site.

Whenever that link is accessed, the creator of the image and web site, not the user downloading the image, is paying for the bandwidth used for viewing the image. As Internet Service Providers (ISPs) charge for or limit access according to bandwidth, such illegal linking can add substantially to maintenance costs of the creator's web site.

Unfortunately however, most people who display graphics on their site are probably unaware that this is occurring. Without protection, attempting to police or prevent bandwidth theft is time consuming and a very inexact science.

Print Screen

All content on a web page can be captured and downloaded to a viewer's computer by simply pressing the Print Screen button on the keyboard.

By doing this, a snapshot of the whole screen is captured at the user's monitor resolution, usually 72 to 96 dots per inch (dpi). When captured at such resolution, most images show little deterioration and can be re-used on the Internet or as clip art by scaling down for use on brochures and leaflets. This is, again, another obviously illegal use of online images.

Screen Capture

Capture programs, although useful as design tools for legitimate intentions, can also be used to capture on-screen images for incorporation into other designs without the authorization or knowledge of the creator and owner of the artwork.

The processes used in screen capture vary according to what the target and end use may be, but without dedicated protection, original images are vulnerable to such theft.

Unauthorized Linking

The very nature of the language of web pages means most content on the web can be linked to from another web site. Such unauthorized linking occurs when a user links to your image from their web page without your consent.

The result of such action is that the unauthorized user is giving the appearance that the legal owner of the image consents to this link and is endorsing the activities of that site.

Spider and Grab Utilities

Even though the links to your files and images are stored within folders that are only linked to or referenced from the main pages and indexes, these items can be downloaded from your website without an unauthorized user ever visiting or calling these indexes or main pages.

By using a freely available spider program, an inventory of content on a remote website can be made and saved on another computer. On an unprotected website this means that the user can gain list every item on your website, save them to disk and use them without even visiting your website.

'Grab' programs are also available that will locate and download all the files in a folder to which it is directed. This means that everything from your Applets and Java class files to your original images can be downloaded and utilized on the illegal user's website.

Inappropriate use of Internet Explorer 5.0

One feature of the latest version of the Internet Explorer browser is of concern to those interested in protecting their images from copy or theft.

Right-clicking on the mouse on an image in an IE browser window not only prompts the user to save the image to their computer, but also saves the whole page and every image and component on the page, including the background tiles, to a folder created by the browser.

Print Quality

Online images were once thought to only be useable on other web sites or in other electronic media. With advances in tools for image creation and manipulation however, many images created specifically for online use can now be reproduced for print.

This fact, together with advances in printer quality, means many online images can be easily reproduced for print reproduction without substantial loss in quality. By maintaining such quality, downloaded images can then potentially be sold and distributed as prints without authorization or license, which is obviously illegal.

Breach of Copyright

Images that are uploaded to the web with a copyright notice attached can still be copied or manipulated by an unauthorized user without the consent of the owner of the image. Even when an image owner notices a copyright breach, the difficulty of working in international jurisdictions means few image owners could police every breach of copyright.

The only way a copyright owner can limit their exposure to such breaches is to attach specific tools and applications to their images.

Who needs protection?

Anyone who creates content that is then displayed or distributed on the web can use ArtistScope's products to protect their intellectual property rights from being compromised.

Industry professionals, photographers and artists, commercial enterprises and educational institution are a few examples of people who can use ArtistScope's products to prevent their online images from illegal copying, printing and manipulation.

What kind of protection does ArtistScope offer?

Depending on the level of security required, different products are available in the ArtistScope software suite. While some users may need extensive image security that involves several pieces of software ensuring image protection is as high as possible, others may need simpler controlling mechanisms.

ArtistScope has several strategies that offer different levels of protection, as listed in the matrix below. For further information about the software available from ArtistScope, please go to a software menu of the website.