Not a free pass to copy anything found online just because it is for education, commentary, or "not making money." That is the most common bad advice. Fair use is a limited defense under federal copyright law that can allow use of someone else's protected work without permission in specific situations. Under Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. § 107, courts weigh four factors: the purpose and character of the use, the nature of the original work, how much was taken, and whether the use harms the market for the original. No single factor automatically wins, and giving credit alone does not make a use fair.

Practically, fair use is often argued when someone quotes part of a book, uses an image for criticism, or includes copyrighted material in news reporting. The safest rule is simple: the more you copy, and the more your use substitutes for the original, the weaker the fair use argument usually gets. A "publicly posted" photo or video is still usually protected by copyright.

In an injury claim, this can matter when a lawyer, investigator, news outlet, or family member reuses crash photos, surveillance clips, or social media posts. In fast-growing areas like Ada County, where crashes generate lots of online sharing, people often assume public equals free to use. It does not. A fair use dispute can affect whether evidence is published, challenged, or removed, even when the underlying injury case involves damages, liability, or evidence.