Social media has become an essential tool for businesses, brands, and creators to share their work, connect with audiences, and build visibility online. But it’s also one of the most frequent places where copyright disputes arise. With just a few clicks, a photo, video, or post can be copied, reposted, or remixed — sometimes without the creator’s knowledge or permission.
Understanding how copyright applies to social media helps protect your brand’s original content and prevents you from accidentally infringing on others.
If you’re new to copyright protection in general, start with The Basics of Copyright Law before diving into social media standards.
Sharing Your Original Content
A big part of most brands’ marketing strategy is regularly publishing content on social media. When you post content on social platforms, you still own it, but you also agree to certain terms of use set by each platform. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and others require users to grant them a broad license to use, display, and distribute content for the purpose of operating their services. That means the photos or videos you post might appear in newsfeeds, thumbnails, or promotional features related to the platform itself.
These licenses don’t transfer ownership, but they do limit your control. Once content is posted, it can be reshared within that platform in ways that you can’t always manage. For creators and businesses, that makes it important to understand the difference between what copyright law protects and what a platform’s policies permit.
Sharing and Using Other People’s Content
What about reposting images, sharing memes, or using music or video clips from another user’s social media account? It’s important to remember that copyright law still protects creative expression even when it’s publicly visible online. Just because something is easy to copy doesn’t mean it’s legal to use.
Get permission
If you want to share someone else’s work, the safest approach is to get permission from the creator. This usually means contacting them directly — through a message, email, or the method they list for licensing — and asking if you may repost or incorporate their content. Some creators will give permission informally with a quick “yes” in writing, while others may require a licensing agreement or fee. Always save proof of their consent, especially if you plan to use the content for marketing or business purposes.
And remember: credit and permission are not the same thing. Crediting someone recognizes their authorship, but it doesn’t give you the legal right to use their work. Without permission or a valid license, reposting can still count as infringement even if you tag or mention the creator.
Choose content licensed for reuse
Another option is to use content that’s clearly licensed for reuse, such as stock photos, public-domain works, or material released under a Creative Commons license. Read the license details carefully, since some allow only noncommercial use or require that you give credit in a specific format.
Use built-in tools
Whenever possible, use a platform’s built-in tools, like “Share,” “Repost,” or “Embed,” instead of downloading and re-uploading files. These functions operate under the site’s own licenses and help you stay within copyright boundaries.
Fair Use in a Social Media Context
You may have heard of “fair use,” which is a doctrine that allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission for specific purposes, such as commentary, criticism, education, or parody. But applying it on social media can be difficult.
A brief clip used in a review or a photo shared for discussion might qualify, but using copyrighted songs, movie stills, or artwork in a marketing post rarely does. Courts evaluate fair use based on several factors, including your purpose, how much of the work you used, and whether your post affects the original creator’s market.
If you have questions, it’s worth reviewing The Doctrine of Fair Use: All You Need to Know or contacting our attorneys, who can assess your particular situation.
New Challenges: AI, Memes, and User-Generated Content
As technology evolves, new questions are raised about ownership and authorship. The U.S. Copyright Office has clarified that works created entirely by artificial intelligence (AI), without meaningful human input, are not eligible for copyright protection. That means purely AI-generated content can be freely used by others unless a human contribution is substantial enough to count as original authorship.
Memes and viral trends also raise copyright concerns. While casual sharing is often tolerated, using a meme or viral clip in a commercial post or advertisement could infringe on the underlying work.
If your business runs a contest or campaign that encourages followers to share their own photos or videos, make sure the rules explain who owns that content and how it may be used. Clear terms help prevent disputes later on.
Best Practices for Creators
The simplest way to stay compliant on social media is to create your own original content and be cautious with what you share. Review each platform’s terms of service, avoid reposting material without permission, and use properly licensed music, images, and videos in your marketing.
Staying informed about copyright basics can also go a long way. A short internal guide explaining what’s allowed — and what’s not — helps prevent mistakes that could harm your brand’s reputation.
For more on how to protect your work beyond social media, see How to Prevent Content Theft Online.
From creating content to resolving copyright disputes, Larson & Larson helps businesses protect their creative assets and build a brand they can share with confidence. Contact us today.
Published by Larson & Larson, a Florida-based intellectual property law firm serving clients since 1987.
