Copyright Infringement of Your Instagram Profile: An Overview

Nowadays, millions of people use the internet, and most of them want to stay connected. Social media is the best platform for people to stay connected, and in the 21st century, hardly any person, irrespective of any country, does not use Social media. Social media is the platform where you can post your picture, videos, status, and stories. However, due to the enormous amount of posting photos, videos, and stories, the issue related to copyright infringement is occurring very frequently. People are illegally stealing the pictures of people via social media platforms like- Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, etc. Instagram is one the most famous social media platform where people mostly post their pictures and videos. Instagram users share a massive amount of photographs and videos per day. We can only anticipate the number of infringements that will occur with this many posts being shared. The most common disagreements are using another’s photographs, background music, or art without their authorization or permission.

Policy related with Copyright infringement of your Instagram Profile

As we all know that the legal rights in respect of jurisdiction vary from country to country. Instagram^[1] plays a very significant role in bringing all the users irrespective of any country on one platform. Therefore, users agreed on the terms and conditions before signing up for their account on Instagram. There are some essential rules contained in their terms and conditions. 

ü It is forbidden to impersonate someone else or give false information about oneself. It is also prohibited to create an account on behalf of another person. To make a profile, you must be at least 13 years old, or whatever the legal age in your country pertains; convicted sex offenders and persons whose accounts have been disabled due to a violation of the law or policy are likewise barred from using Instagram. 

• To use the platform, you must not break the rules or engage in fraudulent or misleading behavior.
• Without Instagram’s prior written consent, a domain name/URL may not be used.
• Instagram does not allow users to upload private or personal information about others.
• An account may not be created unlawfully solely to gather data.
• Accounts and the data they contain cannot be sold, bought, or licensed.

Laws on Copyright infringement of your Instagram photos 

Even though there are no international regulations for copyright protection, certain global treaties have established agreements for the protection of international copyright. The Berne Convention, the Trade-Related Aspects of International Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, and the Universal Copyright Convention were formed over the preceding century and are viewed as crucial in establishing how copyright issues are treated globally. 

Instagram permission granted by the user.

The following are some of the permissions that users provide Instagram as part of the agreement and to deliver seamless services:

• To Prevent the copyright infringement of your Instagram profile, Instagram will have a non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free, sub-licensable, worldwide license to use, host, distribute, display, operate, copy, alter, or publicly perform the user’s content, as well as translate and create derivative works. This license will expire if the user deletes the content from Instagram. 
•  Instagram has permission to display the user’s username, profile picture, and information about their actions for example (Likes, comments, and relationships display “follow” next to or in connection with accounts, ads, offers, and other sponsored content that the user is following or engaging with that is displayed on Facebook Products, without charging the user. Instagram, for example, may suggest that you liked a sponsored post made by a brand that has paid Instagram to have its adverts displayed. 
• Instagram gets access to users’ devices and can download and update the app. 

Case Study 

A case study concerning the copyright infringement of your Instagram profile, The famous case of Volvo Instagram story. Volvo, the automotive manufacturer, was sued for an Instagram story that included photos of a model posing in front of a Volvo car and a link to the Volvo website. The model and photographer filed a complaint alleging that the corporation had violated their copyright by publishing their image. The corporation was also accused of unfair competition, fake endorsement, and misused the model’s likeness. Volvo’s defended itself by filing a Motion to Dismiss, claiming that the photos were posted openly by the model herself. By identifying the car business, it was evident that the model had no claim to redistribute the images. Furthermore, it was reported that the photographs were not used in any paid commercial claims but were utilized on social media and were quickly withdrawn from the platform once the photographer requested them. Their argument was widely panned in the media, with many criticizing it as insulting to the livelihoods of millions of artists who rely on social media to make a living. 

Conclusion

We conclude here that how important your privacy is on the platforms like social media. Nowadays, safeguarding the copyright infringement of your Instagram profile, which is the primary cause of concern, should be sorted and settled. Although social media like Instagram is trying its best to protect your privacy from online trespassers, those who illegally use your pictures, videos and export the same to any other person. However, it’s advantageous to be the creator of any work because the law is overwhelmingly on the artist’s side. The line between using someone else’s art and self-expression isn’t always apparent.

Read our Article:What are the Types of Intellectual Property Rights?