How do I protect images and graphics on my website from copy? What is the safest method for online image protection?
When considering the safest method for protecting online images, one needs to consider the many ways that images can be obtained, downloaded and otherwise copied. Because not only are there the obvious methods that come to everyone's mind of right-clicking to save an image or saving a page with all images and parts included, but there are many ways to steal images and various types of software available for indexing and downloading images from a web site. One also needs to consider theft and plagiarism by company staff and the staff of the web host.
So there is a lot more to consider than just preventing site visitors from saving or grabbing images from pages, which they can do with right-click context menus that offer save, copy and print options or selecting the same options from a web browser's tool bar. While a page is on display a visitor can also use PrintScreen by simply using the PrtScn key on their keyboard or use any one of many screen capture software programs that can take a screenshot of the whole page or any selected area.
Well mouse and keyboard copy and saving can be disabled, and so too can PrintScreen and screen capture be disabled, but that still leaves many other avenues for copy that may be less obvious, but none the same, quite easy to perform. For example there is a variety of different software applications available that can search all of the web pages connected and linked from a home page and index media such as images, video and PDF. Then their operator can nominate which they want and the software will retrieve, download and collate it for easy access and selection later.
The fact that any media displayed on a web page or otherwise linked from a web page makes it accessible to anything and anyone who can read a web page, makes it necessary to decide which content needs to be so accessible and which content protected from such easy access. For example search engines are the main source for plagiarism and will list images by topic and genre. But there are methods that can employed that prevent their access such as encryption, access restrictions and DRM.
However if one needs to leave images and media accessible to search engines and for doorway pages, then protecting them is not an option. Sometimes people can find it hard to understand that there is no way that one can protect images and media and leave it accessible to all and sundry. Copy protection is not magic but rather a series of conditions that if and when met, a site visitor may view that content but only n a controlled environment that enables them to view only and not copy, save, download, print, scrape or otherwise steal your images and media.
If you do want to copy protect images and media, then you must also be prepared to be stand your ground and not be offended by those who oppose copy protection claiming that disabling their options to copy and print is a violation of their rights. "Violation of whose rights?" The right of a website visitor to copy and plagiarize your intellectual property? Well if you do have intellectual property and prepared to protect it then be reminded that it is your property and just because you do publish it online, it doesn't mean that it is free for the taking at all. In fact your site visitors need to realize, and it doesn't hurt to remind them, that access to your website and/or parts thereof is according to your terms and conditions, and not those who will steal from you.
Now that we have the correct perspective, let's look at the best
image protect software for copy protecting images displayed online from your web site.
If you have a dedicated or virtual server so that you can install software at system level, you can use the ArtistScope Site Protection System (ASPS) which provides the most secure protection from absolutely all avenues of copy except theft by your own office staff. ASPS creates a secure tunnel between website and the visitor's web browser which cannot be exploited and data, images and other media cannot be extracted in any way. But it doesn't prevent anyone who has access to the server room from copying anything stored on the server.
However if your website is hosted on a shared hosting server (economy web hosting) you can use the CopySafe Web Protection software. CopySafe Web can be used on any web page hosted anywhere, and while it only copy protects images, those images are safe from your office staff because they are encrypted and the image files cannot be used or displayed anywhere else. They can only be displayed on your web pages.
With both ASPS and CopySafe Web you have the very best of image protection where nothing can be PrintScreen or screen captured while on display on your web page. Both ASPS and CopySafe Web use the ArtisBrowser as the only means of displaying protected. ArtisBrowser is the only web browser that is specially designed to support and enhance the copy protection features of web pages.
To copy protect images distributed for view away from your web site, the CopySafe PDF Protection software is recommended. CopySafe PDF will
copy protect PDF form all avenues of copy and exploit, and PDF is an ideal document format for showcasing image catalogues. Copy protected PDF can be distributed by email, download and on disk with or without DRM to prevent unauthorized use and redistribution.
Author: William Kent
Date: 15th July 2020
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