Introduction
The world is interconnected now more than ever, which means the concepts of copyright, fair use, intellectual property (IP), personal rights violations, and privacy are more relevant. People are navigating a landscape that is increasingly shaped by digital media, social networks, and global communications. Understanding these concepts is crucial for creators, consumers, educators, and businesses alike. These concepts are intertwined in their significance and the legal frameworks that protect them are important to understand.
Copyright
Copyright laws are the legal framework that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights to its use and distribution. According to the U.S. Copyright office, these rights typically last for the creator's lifetime plus an additional number of years, usually 70 years after their death. Copyright applies to a wide range of creative works, including but not limited to, literature, music, art, and software. The goal of copyright law is to encourage creativity by ensuring that creators can control and profit from their work, while also allowing the public to access creative works over time. If copyright laws were not around then creators would not want to create anything for public view because others would use their hard work without crediting the creator. The technology advances with digital media and social media have copyright infringement more prominent. Sites such as YouTube protect themselves under Safe harbour, which means if they have images, videos, or other shared content that infringes on copyright, as long as they can show they did not have prior knowledge it was infringement and they take down the material as soon as they find out it is a case of infringement, then they will not face monetary penalties (Luk, 2024).
Fair Use
Fair use is a legal doctrine that allow the limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. This concept is important in education, journalism, and criticism because the reproduction of portions of copyrighted works is often necessary. The key components to to determining if fair use applies to the use of copyrighted material is the purpose of the use, the nature of the copyrighted work, the amount used, and the effect of the use on the work's market value (Hylton, 2024). According to Hylton (2024), it would be beneficial to also look at the complementary effects of some fair use cases such as AWF v. Goldsmith. Andy Warhol created a derivative work of a photograph by Lynn Goldsmith. Fair use can be judged by interpretation of the criteria of fair use. The argument of fair use is based upon the judges decision and can be biased without even realizing it. In the case of Warhol, the system analyzed the liability based on success that had already been achieved because the judge stated that "it would not impoverish the world to require Warhol to pay Goldsmith some of the profits he made from the derivative work of a copyrighted material" (Rosenblatt, 2023). It brings into question status as it pertains to fair use and copyright. In order to claim fair use of a copyrighted work one needs to make sure they are using it within the confines of the key components.
Intellectual Property (IP)
Intellectual property encompasses copyright as well as other forms of protection for creations of the mind, such as patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. IP rights allow creators and inventors to protect their innovations and creations, ensuring that they can benefit from their work and prevent others from exploiting it without permission. These protections are essential for fostering innovation and creativity across various fields such as technology and the arts. The purpose of IP rights is to protect the intangible products of the human mind, inventions and artistic works (Chowdhury & Gargate, 2024).
Personal Rights Violations
Personal rights violations refers to infringements on an individual's personal rights, such as the right to privacy, the right to a good reputation, and the right to be free from harassment or discrimination. Violations of these rights can occur in various contexts, including media, workplace, and online platforms. Legal protections against personal rights violations are in place to uphold individuals' dignity and ensure their well-being in personal and professional settings. Social media platforms have made it easier for individuals to target other individuals and infringe on personal rights. Personal rights protection within the judicial framework is becoming increasingly important due to private lives becoming a lucrative commodity for certain sectors of the media (Majnarić, 2020).
Privacy
Privacy is the right of individuals to keep their personal information, communications, and activities from being disclosed without their consent. The advances in digital technology and data-driven business models, concerns about privacy have grown significantly. Privacy laws and regulations aim to protect individuals' personal data and control how organizations collect, use, and share it. Schools collect data about students each year and they have to ensure they keep the data secure. The information typically includes demographical information, addresses, phone numbers, birth certificates, health records, other private information. This is just one example of the amount of data just one sector collects and stores. Technology has made the collection of information easier to collect and store, but also makes it easier for hackers to gain the information. Students are often times unaware of the danger of sharing to much about their private lives. Digital privacy for students is a major concern as schools use school-issued devices to enhance learning. According to a study conducted by Utter, Polacsek, & Emond (2022), parents and schools hold the digital privacy of students as highly important, however parents are unaware of policies in place to protect students digital footprints and schools lack the resources to adequately protect students.
Image from https://theshredforce.com/introduction-to-data-privacy-laws/
Task
1. The relationship between law and technology: comparing legal responses to creators’ rights under copyright law through safe harbour for online intermediaries and generative AI technology by Ann Luk
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4. Research Experts: The Dark Side of Plagiarism
https://www.researchexperts.in/dark-side-of-plagiarism-the-consequences-and-repercussions
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7. World Intellectual Property Organization
https://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/
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10. World Trade Organization
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/intel1_e.htm
11. Creative Commons
12. U.S. Copyright Office
Process
The introduction is a brief overview of each of the issues being addressed in this toolkit. I also used sources that I cited in the credits to support the claims and explanations of copyright, fair use, IP, personal rights violations, and privacy. I created my toolkit by researching and looking through videos that I thought would be beneficial to teach students important concepts about the subject matter. The resources in the task portion of the toolkit are engaging and informative. Some of them are from other student's perspectives. This allows the digital footprint content to be heard from kids their own age that are expressing their thoughts and views about posting information for everyone to see. The evaluation is a brief explanation of why I chose the resources that I chose. I numbered them in the task portion and then explained the purpose of that resource using the same numbers in the evaluation. I did this to make it easier to match up the explanation to the resource. The conclusion is brief and just summarizing the information already presented in the introduction. The credits are my sources that I used to support my introduction.
Evaluation
1. This article is scholarly but has a good deal of information about copyright infringement and safe harbour. It explains what safe harbour is and the guidelines around it. It would help students understand the safe harbour side of copyright law.
2. The video is animated and shows kids that nothing on the internet is truly private. It is colorful and engaging while delivering a clear message to be wary of what they post.
3. The video is teens talking to teens about their digital footprint. It explains that not everything has to be posted and you cannot know who is screenshotting what you post. Others can even take photos you posted and alter them. It helps students when the message is delivered by others their own age.
4. Plagiarism is copyright infringement and this website does a good job of explaining not only the consequences of plagiarizing but also the harm it can cause to the person whose information was stolen. It does a good job of looking at the why.
5. This video covers creativity, copyright, and fair use. It discusses the legal reasons to not copy works of others and the ethical issues of stealing someone's work. It also discusses what can be used and what can't. The video also discusses the public domain. The video also explains how to properly use copyrighted work.
6. This video explains copyright infringement. Students need to understand what it means when the words copyright infringement are used.
7. The World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) website is full of helpful information to find out everything about intellectual property. The website has everything from what is considered IP and ways to ensure it is protected.
8. The video on student privacy is beneficial because many students do not realize exactly how much information a school has or the enormity of how important it is to keep that information private. Students need to be made more aware of how important student privacy is and the protections that are in place legally to protect them such as FERPA and COPPA.
9. This video is a little different as it has tranquil music with a person doing yoga in the background. The reason I included it is because basic human rights are appearing on the screen that sometimes we need to hear or see in this case to remind us that these are basic personal rights that we are all entitled to.
10. The World Trade Organization website has a plethora of information about intellectual property and the rights associated with the property. Students can use the website to find information about the current events surrounding IP laws and documents.
11. Creative Commons website. The creative commons website can guide students on the copyright requirements for information in the creative commons. It is a website to find information that is shareable and also the requirements for using the information.
12. The U.S. Copyright office website is very helpful when trying to learn the ins and outs of copyright laws and navigating the copyright procedures.
Conclusion
Understanding the concepts of copyright, fair use, intellectual property, personal rights violations, and privacy is vital in an age where information and content are easily accessible and widely shared. It is imperative to understand the implications and security measures to make sure protocol is being followed to keep data safe when collecting personal information. In schools, when teachers create lesson plans they need to understand what is fair use and what is not. Everyone is entitled to protection from copyright infringement. Whether you are a creator, consumer, student, or business professional, being informed about copyright, fair use, IP, personal rights, and privacy will help you navigate legal and ethical challenges in today's digital world.
Credits
Chowdhury, A. R., & Gargate, G. (2024). Intellectual property management in academic and research organizations: The role of a laboratory notebook. Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, 49(1), 45–66. https://doi.org/10.1177/02560909241234239
Hylton, K. N. (2024). Utility, copyright, and fair use after Warhol. Texas Intellectual Property Law Journal, 32(2), 135–186.
Luk, A. (2024). The relationship between law and technology: Comparing legal responses to creators’ rights under copyright law through safe harbour for online intermediaries and generative AI technology. Law, Innovation & Technology, 16(1), 148–169. https://doi.org/10.1080/17579961.2024.2313800
Majnarić, M., LLM. (2020). Freedom of expression of the media and violation of personal rights (constitutional framework and practice of the constitutional court of the republic of croatia). Osijek: J.J. Strossmayer University of Osijek. Retrieved from https://go.openathens.net/redirector/nu.edu?url=https://www.proquest.co…
Rosenblatt, B. (2023). Considering the role of fairness in copyright fair use. Houston Law Review, 61(2), 261–293.
U.S. Copyright Office https://www.copyright.gov/what-is-copyright/
Utter, H., Polacsek, M., & Emond, J. A. (2022). Parents’ perceptions of privacy policies and practices for school‐issued digital devices: Implications for school practices. Journal of School Health, 92(1), 99–108. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.13107
Teacher Page
The Creative Commons website can be very intimidating when accessing it for the first time. I suggest guiding students and having them explore the site in class to assist them with any questions that may arise.
Discussions with students to place them in the situation where it was their work being used without permission lead to great conversations and open dialogue to help them understand why infringing on copyrights are not okay.