With over 2.8 billion monthly active users, Facebook is the biggest social media platform in the world. Naturally, users upload billions of photos and videos to their Facebook accounts every day. You may have come across a funny or cute picture on Facebook that you wanted to save or share with friends who are not on Facebook. Is it okay to save photos from Facebook without permission? Let’s find out.
Can You Save Public Photos from Facebook?
In short, yes you can save public photos from Facebook as long as you do not claim them as your own or use them commercially. Facebook’s Terms of Service state that they do not claim ownership of any content that users upload publicly. This means that if a user uploads a photo publicly, without privacy settings, they are allowing anyone on Facebook to view, share and save that photo. By uploading publically, the user understands that the photo can be used by others in any way, including saving it. There is no copyright protection on public Facebook photos.
However, while you are allowed to save public Facebook photos, you should be careful about how you use them. Posting a Facebook photo that you saved and claiming you took the photo would be unethical and could get you into legal trouble for fraud. Additionally, using a public Facebook photo for commercial purposes without permission, such as printing it on a t-shirt for sale, would be copyright infringement.
Examples of Legal Uses of Public Facebook Photos
- Saving a funny meme or cute animal photo to show friends later
- Making a public Facebook photo your screensaver or device background
- Posting the photo to your own profile and crediting the source
Examples of Illegal Uses of Public Facebook Photos
- Claiming you took the photo yourself
- Using the photo commercially by selling prints or merchandise without permission
- Entering the photo into a photo contest and claiming it as your own
Is it Illegal to Save Private Facebook Photos?
Saving or sharing photos that the owner has marked private on Facebook is strictly prohibited. Facebook’s Terms of Service make it very clear that private content is off limits to anyone but the owner. Accessing private content in any way, including saving, is considered hacking under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and can result in criminal charges.
There are a few ways users may try to access private Facebook photos illegally:
- Guessing or hacking someone’s password – This allows full access to the account and all private content. Hacking accounts is illegal and unethical.
- Exploiting a security flaw – Loopholes that allow access to accounts or private content should be reported, not exploited.
- Using specialized software – Software or bots designed to infiltrate private accounts should not be used to access photos.
Some people try to justify saving private photos by claiming that the photos were “public” at some point. However, simply because a photo used to be public does not mean it is okay to access and distribute it once it has been made private. Any private Facebook photo that is saved or shared without the owner’s consent is an illegal violation of privacy.
What Happens If You Save Private Facebook Photos?
You may face serious legal consequences for accessing and saving private Facebook photos without permission. Facebook takes privacy very seriously and will act swiftly to protect their users’ rights. If caught saving private photos, you may experience:
- Your Facebook account immediately banned or disabled
- Legal action from Facebook for violating Terms of Service
- A lawsuit from the owner of the photos for invasion of privacy
- An investigation and criminal charges for hacking if unauthorized account access was used
Copyright law allows photo owners to sue unauthorized users for up to $30,000 for each photo, plus legal fees. With legal penalties adding up so quickly, saving private Facebook photos simply isn’t worth the risk.
Tips to Legally Save Facebook Photos
Here are some tips to safely and legally save Facebook photos:
- Only save photos that have been intentionally made public, not private ones
- Credit the owner if you share the photo anywhere
- Check Photo Properties to confirm a photo is public
- Never override someone’s privacy settings or hack accounts
- Report security flaws to Facebook instead of exploiting them
- Ask the owner for permission before commercial use
- Do not enter public photos into contests as your own
FAQs
Is it illegal to save profile pictures from Facebook?
It depends. If the profile picture is set to public, you can save it. If the owner has set it to private, saving it would be illegal.
What if I just save photos I’m tagged in by friends?
Tagged photos fall under the account owner’s privacy settings. If your friend tags you in a public photo, you can save it. But you cannot save photos they have tagged you in that are set to private without permission.
Can I pin or embed public Facebook photos on Pinterest?
Pinterest’s terms do not allow embedding of content from other platforms without permission. While legally you could save a Facebook photo to Pinterest, it goes against Pinterest’s policies.
Is it illegal to screenshot someone’s Facebook profile or photos?
Screenshots are considered saving photos. So you can screenshot public profiles or photos but not private ones. Always double check that any screenshotted photo is public.
What if I just save photos from Facebook as a backup of my profile?
You have the right to save any content you have directly uploaded. But you cannot backup anything that others have posted, whether public or private, without the owner’s consent.
Conclusion
Saving public Facebook photos is perfectly legal with some common sense limitations on sharing or commercial use. However, accessing private content without permission, no matter the reason, is a violation of Facebook’s terms and federal privacy laws. Always respect other users’ privacy settings. For public photos, credit the owner and do not use them as your own. Following these rules will keep you safely on the right side of the law.