Is it permissible to upload family photos to FamilySearch from other genealogical websites?
Hello!
A FamilySearch member has uploaded several photos of my deceased family members from memorial pages I created for them on the Ancient Faces website to their corresponding pages on Family Search (the photos have the "Ancient Faces" name in the lower right corner).
Is this permissible? I'm sure this member meant well and I realize Family Search is a collaborative effort to gather as much information on our families as possible, but I had made an intentional decision to put certain photos exclusively on Ancient Faces and others on Family Search.
Best Answer
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Unless the other user has your permission, then, no, using photos from other websites is not permissible.
Many people work on the mistaken idea that "if it's on the internet I can use it however I like." If you cannot reach an amicable conclusion with the contributor, you can report abuse. I've had to do that a few times.
https://www.familysearch.org/legal/familysearch-content-submission-agreement
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Answers
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Thank you for your reply!!
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I totally agree that it would be best for people to ask permission before copying from one place to another.
Thats proper etiquette which I totally support and I think most in the genealogy world support this etiquette.
but on the other hand - looking from a legal perspective - one has to also consider the question - "Are you, yourself. really the copyright owner of such images?" (even if they came from your deceased ancestors) and even if you scanned them. In some cases the answer could be that NO you dont have copyright, But I am not a lawyer and I dont know all the details of your photos.
Besides copy right - there is also "Terms of use" contract law that may apply - but in a large number of cases - this applies to items that are created/owned by the owner of the system (Ancient Faces etc) and not items that are uploaded by people simply using the system
copyrght and terms of use - have a lot of complex "wrinkles"
but as far as etiquette and what people should normally do - - asking permission is always the best idea
but don't confuse that with what is legal and what is not.
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some great sites discussing legal aspects of copyright and terms of use
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. . . Having said all that - I believe if you did report this as "abuse" (because they did not obtain your permission) - I think the chances are fair that FS would remove them - even if you may not have legal copyight.
(if it was obvious that they had gotten the photos from your Ancient Faces page without your permission and they didnt get it somewhere else where it was considered "public domain")
You will find the "report abuse" link on the memories page of the item.
NO guarantees - but if it bothers you enough - give it a try.
BUT in short - the person who DOES have legal copyright - is the original photographer. and if that was before like 1920 - that would put such an item in the public domain.
scanning a photo and uploading it to a site - does NOT give copyright to the person who does that. ( If they didnt create the photo)
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Hello, Dennis!
Thank you for your three detailed replies.
I contacted the FamilySearch member who uploaded the AncientFaces photos and explained that I preferred they only be on AncientFaces. She was very apologetic and deleted them from FamilySearch. I told her that I knew she uploaded them in good faith and that I wasn't at all "offended", as she thought I was.
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