Watermarks and photo banks

[Loose_Cannon]

Hi all, could someone enlighten me as to what you can and cant use watermarked copyrighted images for?

For instance, you have found an interesting picture and it happens to have "Getty Images" pastered on it. If you then save it to your PC then post it up on a forum or facebook with a caption like "ooh look at this lovely car" etc, are you doing anything wrong?

Or are the copyright owners only interested in commercial uses ie if the image was reproduced en masse in magazines or used by someone who takes payment from using it etc?

[Tony1963]

Strictly speaking, the image shouldn’t be shared at all, unless you have permission from the copyright holder.

However, in practice, most copyright holders realise that it’s impossible to police low key usage/sharing. If they want to , they can ask for the image to be removed from the forum. Most sharers would comply. Legal action ‘might’ follow if the request is ignored.

[Loose_Cannon]

Thanks for that info.