Flickr user and Utata webmaster Irana has reported in a thread her outrage caused by a Romanian newspaper. Not only have they used her photograph without permission, not only is this picture of her as a child, but they have used it to illustrate a piece about children being used by the Romanian version of the KGB! Read more over at Flickr: Utata
I am really not sure how to handle this. I have been informed today that my school photo, from when I was a child, was used today in an article in Romania. Let’s put this straight. This is my image. This is a photo I scanned and posted on the Internet. Have I been contacted prior to publication? NO. Is there attribution on the website and in the newspaper? NO. Have I been asked my permission that my image to be given as an example of children that had been hired by the “Securitate” (Romanian KGB)? Freaking NO. This is triple offense.
You have to feel it for her, she must feel frustrated and helpless. I do hope she can work something out.
What can we learn from this? Not very much really, a lot of us lately have posted up pictures of ourselves as children, plus our own children. I guess we can go through and make them all private. In fact I mostly do make pictures of my daughter private now out of fear. Really these publications should know better, morally at least, but I fear they know exactly what they are doing and know there is little anyone can do about it.
Technorati Tags: flickr, law, photography, copyright, news
One Comment
Well, I can understand that she feels upset, I would do. But posting images on Flickr happens to be under the Creativ-Common License if I am properly informed.
What does this kind of license say about re-using the Pictures especially in Publications of Commercial Use ? I am not aware …
I would say if they would have used the picture in a “non-Commercial” way there would be no point in being offended, since we should be aware of this type of usage as we post our Works on Flickr …
However the most discriminating and offending Part is the misinformation that this Newspaper is spreading by stating that Irana was in the “Securitate”.
Thats actually something that goes against my understanding of the honesty and ethics of reporting … (I am sure similar things just happen everyday, almost everywhere in some kind of way)
Alone for this reason I would try to sue them … In this case a real person is getting hurt by pure lies ! Her Reputation is seriously threatened