These frequently asked questions provide some general information about copyrights, including how you can avoid infringing on the copyrights of others when using Quizlet and how you can protect your own copyrighted works. If you believe someone is violating your copyright on Quizlet, please let us know using our DMCA reporting tool.
We can't provide legal advice, so you may want to speak with an attorney if you have more questions about copyright.
What is copyright?
Copyright is a legal right that protects original works. In general, if you create a copyrightable work, you get a copyright the moment you create it. To qualify, a work must have some amount of creativity.
Copyright protects a wide variety of original works, including books, TV shows, songs, photographs, paintings, and many others. Generally, things like names, titles, slogans, or short phrases aren't considered to be original enough for copyright protection. However, they may be protected under other intellectual property rights, like trademark. Copyright also doesn't usually protect basic facts or ideas, but it may protect specific words or images that convey a fact or idea.
Copyright laws vary widely between countries. For more information on copyright law in the US and internationally, you can visit the US Copyright Office or the World Intellectual Property Organization websites.
Who owns a copyright?
Usually, the person who creates the original work owns the copyright. For example, if you write a book or take a photo, you generally own the copyright for that book or photo.
That said, there are a number of exceptions to this rule, so you may want to contact an attorney if you're not sure about whether you own a copyright to a particular work.
How can I make sure the content I post to Quizlet doesn't violate copyright law?
Our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines require that you only upload content to our website and mobile apps that doesn't violate the intellectual property rights of another party. The easiest way to help make sure that the content you post doesn't violate copyright law is to only post original content that you've created yourself.
You may be able to use someone else's work on Quizlet if you have permission, the work is in the public domain, you have a license, or your use is covered by fair use or another exception. If you're asking permission from a copyright owner, it's generally a good idea to get that permission in writing before posting content and to make sure you follow all requirements set out by the copyright owner.
Some content creators choose to make their copyrighted work available for reuse with certain requirements. For example, they may require that you give attribution or that you don't modify an image or other content when using it. You can learn more about Creative Commons licenses here.
Remember that it's always your responsibility to make sure you have the right to use content before uploading it to Quizlet.
Can Quizlet tell me if an image is ok to use?
Unfortunately, we can't determine whether your use of any particular image or content is acceptable under copyright law. We also aren't able to help you get permission to use copyrighted content.
What's fair use?
In some circumstances, it's possible to use a copyright-protected work without infringing the owner's copyright under the legal doctrine known as fair use.
Courts generally rely on the following four factors to analyze fair use on a case-by-case basis:
- The purpose and character of the use
- The nature of the copyrighted work
- The amount and substantiality of the copyrighted work used
- The effect of the use on the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work
If you've received a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice and believe the content you uploaded is protected under fair use, you can use that as a reason to file a counter notice. However, we can't guarantee that your content will be protected from removal. Also, the rules in different countries vary for when it's ok to use material without the copyright owner's permission.
Please see our Help Center article on DMCA notices and our policy for submitting a DMCA counter notice for more information.
What is the public domain?
Copyrighted works that have lost copyright protection fall into what's known as the public domain. That means they're free for everyone to use. It typically takes many years for works to fall into the public domain. The Cornell Copyright Information Center has a useful chart about how long copyright protection can last. Certain works created by US federal government agencies fall into the public domain right when they're published, and some creators voluntarily give up their rights and put their work in the public domain.
Unfortunately, there's no official list of works in the public domain. Washington State University has a list of public domain sources that may be useful, but neither we nor the university can guarantee that all the works there are free from copyright protection or other restrictions.
Someone is violating my copyright on Quizlet. What can I do?
We're fully committed to protecting the rights of intellectual property owners under the DMCA.
If you believe that content available on Quizlet infringes your copyright, please submit a DMCA takedown request using our DMCA request submission form.
To learn more about our policy regarding copyright, please see our Copyright Infringement and DMCA Policy.
I received a DMCA takedown notice. What does that mean?
The DMCA requires that we disable access to content on Quizlet that is reported by a copyright holder as infringing on their copyright. That means that when we receive a DMCA notice from a publisher claiming that content on Quizlet infringes on copyright, we will disable access to that set and send you a notice about the removal.