Copyright of images from the internet

Q If I was to use images from the net in a slide show, what would the rules concering these be? I can't find any associated copyrights to the images I want to use and nothing is marked down, but I was wondering what the rules are govering the use of images from the internet.

A In the UK, copyright applies at the moment of creation, and does not need to be explicitly stated. So, for unknown images on the internet, you should assume they are copyright unless stated otherwise. However, there are exceptions granted in the UK to copyright, mainly in the case of research or fair usage (eg if you were reviewing a website, it would be considered fair usage to include an image of it). The UK patents site has some useful information on this: www.patent.gov.uk/copy/c-manage/c-useenforce/c-useenforce-use/c-useenforce-use-exception.htm. So under some circumstances you can still use them legally, but ultimately, it is better to ask permission. If you just need general images to use for your presentation, can I suggest you search for Creative Commons-licensed work? Check out www.creativecommons.org.

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