Do you run a blog, e-commerce, or corporate website and use “images from the internet,” templates with built-in photos, or creatives from a freelancer? A single unlicensed image can trigger a claim for hundreds of euros—sometimes years after publication. This is a very current issue that affects any online business: agencies, shops, media, SaaS, professionals…
In this guide you’ll find, clearly and actionably, what copyright protects, when you may use images without asking, what responsibilities you take on if you publish without coverage, how amounts are typically calculated, the time limits to bring claims, and where a dispute might be litigated in the EU. Read it today, avoid headaches tomorrow.

1) What’s protected and who owns it

• Photographic works and images (photos, illustrations, renders, graphics) are protected if they are original creations.

• The initial holder is the author (natural person). There may be assignments/licences by contract (commissions, employment).

• Protection covers moral rights (attribution/integrity, inalienable in Spain) and economic rights: reproduction, distribution, public communication, and—key online—making available.
  In practice: uploading an image to your site involves reproduction and making available; you need a licence or a statutory exception.

2) Licences and “royalty-free”: myths and facts

• “Free” ≠ free of rights. Seeing an image on Google/Social does not authorise use.

• Royalty-free doesn’t erase copyright: it avoids per-use charges but still imposes terms (scope, restrictions, attribution).

• Creative Commons: watch NC (non-commercial) and SA (share-alike); they can conflict with many marketing uses.

• Stock platforms (Getty, Shutterstock, iStock, Adobe, Freepik…): contractual licences with limits (print runs, merchandising, logos, sensitive uses). Keep invoice, download ID, URL, and terms.

3) Exceptions and limitations (use without permission)

Interpreted restrictively:

• Quotation/illustration (analysis, criticism, review): requires a legitimate purpose, proportionality, author and source, and must not prejudice normal exploitation.

• Parody (Art. 39 LPI) and Pastiche (Art. 70 RDL 24/2021): in Spain, the Copyright Act expressly recognises parody and, since 2021, pastiche as limitations provided they do not cause confusion or unjustified harm to the work/author. At EU level, Member States may also recognise caricature as an exception, but in Spain it is not an autonomous limitation in the LPI.

• Incidental use: a non-prominent appearance.

• Freedom of panorama: works permanently located in public spaces (scope varies by country; be cautious for commercial uses).

• Teaching/research: narrow scenarios, typically not applicable to commercial websites.
  Golden rule: if the purpose is promotional/commercial, it rarely fits an exception → get a licence.

4) Liability of the site owner and third parties

• The publisher/owner who decides to post an image is generally liable if there’s no coverage, even if a third party (agency, freelancer, supplier) provided it.

• Hosts/platforms may benefit from safe-harbour-type rules if they lack actual knowledge and act diligently upon notice (DSA), but this does not absolve the publisher for their own content.

• For commissioned work, agree who obtains/keeps licences and require warranties/indemnities from the supplier; vis-à-vis the rightholder, the party who exploits the image on its site is exposed.

5) Typical claims: what can be requested

Under Spanish civil law, a rightholder may seek:

• Cessation (take-down and abstention from future use).

• Damages (Art. 140 LPI), at the holder’s choice:

  • Hypothetical licence fee (what it would have cost to license).

  • Economic consequences (loss + infringer’s profit), plus investigation costs and moral damage where applicable.

• Ancillary measures (publication of the judgment, destruction/seizure of infringing copies).
  In practice: demand letters often resemble a retroactive licence (e.g., stock tariff) with a possible uplift for past use/administration.

👉 Before one of these claims hits your inbox, it’s worth auditing your website with tools like Image Copyright Checker. With a free report you’ll know in minutes if any of your images appear in paid stock libraries and avoid surprise invoices of hundreds of euros.

6) Time limits (prescription/caducity)

• Damages in Spain: 5 years from when the rightholder could bring the action (Art. 140.3 LPI).

• If the image remains online, the infringement may be continuous: the holder can claim the last 5 years and seek injunction (removal) now.

• Other EU jurisdictions may have nuances; take care if the forum is outside Spain.

7) Where could it be litigated (jurisdiction in the EU)

Regulation (EU) 1215/2012:

1. Defendant’s domicile (e.g., Spain) → allows claiming the entire damage.

2. Place of damage (accessibility/protection in that State) → the court’s jurisdiction over damages is limited to that territory (CJEU Pinckney/Hejduk doctrine).
   Practical upshot: if your site is accessed in multiple countries, the chosen forum shapes how much damage can be claimed.

8) Defence and mitigation

• Valid licence (date/use/territory) → provide proof.

• Exception → justify purpose/proportionality and credit author/source.

• Prompt takedown upon learning of the issue → reduces the claimable period and shows good faith.

• Excessive quantum → challenge real value (non-exclusive image, low visibility/traffic, age, lack of tangible harm).

• Negotiation → propose a retroactive licence including an express waiver of actions for the same URLs.

9) Compliance checklist for websites and e-commerce

1. Internal policy: don’t publish without identified origin/licence.

2. Proof archive: invoice/ID/URL/terms.

3. CMS tagging: origin (own/purchased/CC/AI) and conditions.

4. Periodic audits: prioritise high-traffic pages and older assets.

5. Contracts with third parties: allocate licensing duties and warranties.

6. Response protocol: single channel, deadlines, and a template that avoids admitting infringement until verification.

7. Team training: basics on CC, stock terms, and prohibited uses.

🚀 And if you work with WordPress, you can simplify the entire process by installing the free plugin available in Resources. This way, you’ll have an integrated alert and license archive system in your CMS instead of relying on manual searches.

10) Key takeaways

• Attribution does not replace a licence.

• Google/Social are not free-use sources.

• Royalty-free still comes with conditions.

• Exceptions are narrow and interpreted restrictively.

• Removing the image mitigates exposure but does not by itself close a claim.

• When in doubt, license or replace the image.