Question

I am creating a photography website so I have stopped browsers on PC/Macs from being able to download the image. When I viewed the site on an iPad, I was able to copy the image. Is there a way of stopping this from happening?

Answer 1

You’re fighting for a lost cause here: You can’t win. It’s a bit like the classic DRM/data encryption issue: If you want to use it, you have to decrypt it. If you can decrypt it, it’s no longer protected.

You can avoid users being able to hot-link images (which still can be faked/circumvented) and you can try to make it harder to download images with standard tools (like the browser’s context menu), but in general you just can’t avoid it, because you don’t have control over the client.

What you can do – which will make downloading a bit harder without screwing with basic functionality etc. – is not using <img/> but rather a <div/> with the image set as its background-image.

But if you really care about your own images, I’d do the following rather than trying to screw with users just appreciating your work (they might want to set a nice picture as their desktop background, which might even get them to tell others about your site):

• Add a small watermark to your images, like a signature line or provide only limited resolutions. You can offer higher quality/non-watermarked copies upon request (or link some printing service).
• Invite people liking your pictures to download them for private, non-commercial use.
• Offer them an easy way to contact you in case they want to use the images for something else.
• Add social network buttons for an easy way for visitors to show their friends your work. They don’t have to copy anything if they can just link the stuff the easy way – plus this will net you some more traffic for free!

There are reasons sites allowing people to share their photographs, artworks, etc. (deviantART, instagram, etc.) are so popular: People like to use them, they appreciate the involved work, etc.
And don’t forget: Just because you don’t “protect” your content with some nasty tricks doesn’t mean you don’t own the rights or aren’t any longer allowed to fight others abusing it. You can still legally fight against others violating your copyright or other rights, even if you offer it for download for free (unless you give them proper permission, e.g. with some creative commons license).