Thousand-Dollar Fines for Using Others’ Content in Ads: How to Protect Yourself

Marketing InternetMarketing Advertising_campaign Content

Date: 2025-11-27 | Time of reading: 8 minutes (1511 words)

This article breaks down what qualifies as someone else’s content and why the idea that “if it’s online, it’s free to use” is a dangerous myth.

What Content Is Protected by Copyright

Any original text, photo, video, music, or illustration is automatically protected by copyright the moment it’s created — no registration or copyright notice is required. Under both U.S. and EU law, using such material without the creator’s permission is illegal. Copyright gives the owner exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, or display their work. Unless you have explicit permission, the absence of a “no use” notice does not mean you’re allowed to use it.

In the United States, violations can lead to civil penalties (such as statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work under the U.S. Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 504) and, in severe cases, criminal charges for willful infringement. In the European Union, copyright protection follows similar principles under the EU Copyright Directive (2019/790), with liability for both individuals and companies that misuse protected materials.

In copyright cases, U.S. law allows courts to award statutory damages ranging from $750 to $30,000 per work, and up to $150,000 per work for willful infringement, under 17 U.S.C. § 504(c). In the European Union, compensation is generally based on actual losses or the market value of a license, following Article 13 of Directive 2004/48/EC (the Enforcement Directive).

A major case currently before the courts shows how seriously copyright infringement is treated: in 2024, Getty Images sued Stability AI in the U.S. and U.K., alleging the company used millions of copyrighted photos to train its AI models without permission — with damages claimed at up to $1.8 billion.

Beyond financial risks, courts can order the removal of infringing content, destruction of illegal copies, and public acknowledgment of the violation. Even when a dispute ends with a warning or settlement, reputation loss can be severe: once the story of “borrowed” visuals spreads, trust and audience loyalty often take a lasting hit.

AI-generated content should be approached with the same level of caution as any other creative work — especially if it uses third-party data or clearly reproduces protected elements of an existing piece.

In both the United States and the European Union, ideas, concepts, and artistic “style” are not protected by copyright. What is protected are the specific expressive elements of a work — such as its composition, structure, choice of details, and other original creative features. If AI output substantially reproduces those protected elements, it can qualify as an infringing derivative work, even if it was created algorithmically rather than copied by hand.

So how can you create legal images with Stable Diffusion? We explain in detail here.

What Penalties Can You Face for Using Someone Else’s Content

Popular AI platforms state that users themselves are responsible for the lawful use of generated results. Midjourney, Stability AI, and OpenAI all specify in their terms of service that you are solely accountable for the data you upload and for ensuring that your outputs comply with copyright and other third-party rights.

Before using AI-generated materials commercially, make sure your prompts and results do not reference or reproduce protected brands, characters, or recognizable works.

How to Check Content Before Publishing

Before posting, make sure the materials you use don’t infringe on copyright. Here are a few practical tips.

Ask About the Source of Materials

If an employee or contractor provides you with an image, video, or text, ask who created it and where it came from. They should confirm that the content is either their own work or legally obtained.

Use Reputable Stock Platforms

Paid services like Shutterstock, iStock, and Getty Images offer licensed content via subscriptions or one-time payments. Free platforms such as Unsplash, Pexels, and Pixabay often use CC0 or similar open licenses — though some may still require crediting the author or prohibit commercial use.

Always review the licensing terms carefully: a label like “Editorial Use Only” means the image cannot be used in ads or commercial products. If you’re unsure, it’s safer to buy an extended license or choose different content.

Offset-labeled images on shutterstock.com include almost all commercial usage rights (advertising, packaging, large print runs, TV, outdoor ads, etc.), but you’ll need to pay extra for them.

Check the Permissions

Different types of content come with different licensing restrictions. For example, a font downloaded online may be free for personal use only, while a commercial license is required for business projects. The same applies to music in videos — some tracks are available under Creative Commons licenses but often require attribution or prohibit use in advertising.

Pay attention to the type of Creative Commons license:

CC BY — may be used if you credit the author;
CC BY-SA — may be used with attribution and under the same license;
CC BY-NC — for non-commercial use only;
CC BY-ND — you may not modify the work.

Sometimes you’ll see combinations of these labels — those must be considered as well.

Run an Image or Text Search

It’s useful to perform an image search to make sure the picture wasn’t taken from someone else’s website without permission. For text, use plagiarism checkers to detect any copied material. Quotes are allowed only in limited amounts and must include proper attribution.

Document Your Review

In your workflow, it helps to create a checklist or internal guide for content verification. For example, for each new image, record: source — specific stock platform; license — type (with a saved copy); plagiarism check — passed. For text: plagiarism — OK; citations — source list attached.

What to Do If You Receive a Claim for Using Someone Else’s Content

1. Remove the disputed content from public access as soon as you learn about the claim. Even if you do not yet agree with the claim, it is better to remove the content while the issue is being reviewed.

2. Analyze the essence of the claim. Carefully examine what exactly you are being accused of. Which rights and which object are allegedly infringed? Sometimes people confuse copyright with trademark rights or with a person’s image rights — make sure you are actually accused of copyright infringement. Check who made the claim: the author, their representative, or an organization (for example, a photo bank or agency).

3. Consult a lawyer. If your company has an in-house lawyer, involve them immediately. If not — it makes sense to get at least one consultation with an intellectual property specialist. A lawyer can help assess whether the claim is justified — whether there was indeed an infringement or your case may fall under fair use. Sometimes claims are sent without valid grounds (for example, scammers who demand money without owning any rights).

4. Try to settle the matter out of court. In most cases, an out-of-court settlement is the best solution for a business. Court proceedings are long, expensive, and public. Therefore, if the rights holder is willing to discuss, find a compromise. Most often it comes down to money: discuss what compensation you could pay to resolve the issue.

How to Avoid Problems with Third-Party Content

Conduct an audit. Review the materials on your website, blogs, social media, and ad creatives — make sure nothing belonging to others slipped in without permission.
Assign someone responsible for content control. The company should be clear about who ensures copyright compliance. This could be a lawyer, a content manager, the head of marketing, or a specifically trained employee.
Be careful with neural networks. If you’re implementing AI tools in content marketing, set ethical and legal boundaries. For example, prohibit employees from generating images that copy the styles of famous artists or include others’ trademarks. Set up checks for AI content: run text through plagiarism detection and images through reverse image search. Keep up with AI law updates: new labeling requirements for AI content or restrictions on its use may appear soon.
Budget for legal content. Companies often try to save on content and risk fines. It’s far better to budget for stock, fees, and licenses: a few hundred rubles for a photo is cheaper than a multi-thousand-ruble claim. Invest in lawful content — it’s part of your brand’s value.

Checklist: What to Check

Source — find out who the author is and where the material came from.
Documents — is there a contract or license for its use?
License — does it fit your purpose (commercial use, advertising, print run, territory, duration)?
Attribution — is author credit required under the terms (for example, CC BY)?
Uniqueness check — run the text through a plagiarism checker and images through reverse image search.
AI content — make sure the prompt doesn’t include other people’s brands/styles and that the platform’s rules allow commercial use.
Details — check music, fonts, memes, and GIFs: ensure there’s a license or they come from free libraries.