Just heard that now with the new privacy laws starting in the EU tomorrow that taking your pics in the EU and publishing them on any social media without the consent of the person is TABOO!
And the person can rescind the agreement at any time.
FYI!
There is a whole bunch of new policies with regard to privacy especially on the internet going into effect in EU. Even in the US has been against copyright laws to publish pictures for commercial purpose without permission. Causal use (no profit) was OK but it was a fuzzy area related to social media. And extremely hard to enforce. With the advertising associated with social media does that then become a commercial activity. I think it is a long needed clean up in the area. You should be able to control your own image and how it is used.
And that is signed consent.
I totally agree. This is a good move by the EU. I'm an amateur photographer, but I stay away from photographs where the people can be identified or humiliated or treated as if they are a tourist attraction, etc.
I think this is great. That is one of my biggest pet peeves - people taking pictures of others and posting them willy-nilly without the person's knowledge or consent.
Wow, I must really be an old-fashioned fuddy duddy - I have never, and would never, publicly post someone's picture without first asking them for permission (even my family members). No, I don't ask for a signed permission, just accept their yes or no answer.
It would be useful to read a definative interpretation of the GDPR on street photography. Here in the States, there is sort of a balance between first ammendment freedom of express and the right to privacy. What is the EU balance?
...publicly post someone's picture without first asking them for permission ...
If one were photographing the Tour de France racers, would one need model releases from the racers being photographed. And what about the spectators in the crowds. Or the Royal Wedding spectators in the background behind the Royal Couple....
Keep in mind we are not talking about a picture where the individual is the center of the shot (well that certainly qualifies under the regulation) but any picture...for example, taking a picture of Brandenberg Gate in Berlin, where someones face is visible. Good luck getting a photo in any popular spot that does not include a person. You can certainly take the shot, but posting on your Facebook page, on your Blog, or any social media is verboten. Need not be for financial gain, only "available" on the internet, violating their privacy.
Will all this stick? Will there ever be any actions pursued? Who knows. Some EU countries are filing exemptions for public photos, but more to come.
On an amusing note, any of you ever wondered how many other tourist's pix you ended up in because you were standing within frame of their shots? I've a bad feeling that my backside appears in the periphery of trip photos scattered all over Asia.
As an FYI-that's also law in the U.S. No one is allowed to take a picture of another person without consent.
As an FYI-that's also law in the U.S. No one is allowed to take a picture of another person without consent.
Well, that is not exactly true. If you are in a Public area and have no reasonable expectation of privacy, then any case you bring will likely be tossed out unless the photographer is realizing financial gain and it is shown that you are the focus or purpose of the picture. There is even an exception for photographs of "newsworthy" endeavors, or in the case of celebrities, that the photographs are in the public interest. This does not even begin to get into surveillance cameras and a multitude of instances.
In Europe they have also indicated that it needs to be informed consent, meaning.."do you mind if I take your picture?" is not sufficient, you also need to inform them of your intent for the picture, and as someone mentioned, if they later object to the picture being on your Facebook post, your are in violation of the regulation and must remove it, and likely take action to assure that it is removed from all platforms.
Again, will any of this ever take hold? Would they really go after your Facebook page? The Eu has a history of passing sweeping regulations that then get bound up in bureaucracy, and then sometimes fade away, or get more rules tacked on and wind up more mainstream.
Sounds like it's related to the GDPR (General Data Privacy Regulation). The law is over 400 pages long and companies are scrambling to map out their road to compliance. I used to share photos of our trips on Facebook but it's no longer worth thinking so hard about. Wouldn't want a big fine from the EU.
It is indeed tied to the GDPR compliance, I'm sure everyone has seen an increase in emails talking about the privacy rules and consent for the new EU rules. Since the rule gives most online property rights to the individual instead of a company, I expect that if the new law works, the US will slowly change it's laws to match.
Just heard that now with the new privacy laws starting in the EU
tomorrow that taking your pics in the EU and publishing them on any
social media without the consent of the person is TABOO! And the
person can rescind the agreement at any time.
Link please.
The GDPR compliance refers to rules about companies and the data they amass.
Thus please show the link specifying GDPR regulations regarding photos taken by individual people and what individuals' specific responsibilities will be with regard to their personal photos when GDPR is enacted into law tomorrow. Thanks so much.
Just to lighten the moment. Thirty five or so years ago a man in New York took his girlfriend to a Yankees baseball game. A television crowd shot showed him and his lady all snuggled up in the bleachers with their beer and peanuts. His wife (who was not a baseball fan) just happened to turn on the television at that moment. Shortly thereafter she filed for divorce, got the cars, house, and a big alimony settlement. He then sued the television network for "invasion of privacy". The judge threw out the case saying "When a married man goes out in public with a woman who is not his wife, he forfeits all right to privacy."
...please show the link specifying GDPR regulations regarding photos taken by individual people and what individuals' specific responsibilities....
If you do a Google/web search for "GDPR street photography" you will get a lot of discussion and opinions on the topic. Looks like personal photography and posting is unsettled law.
NELSON: Given the crowds, you inevitably will end up with a few
strangers in your photos. That could be a problem after Friday when an
EU law known as the General Data Protection Regulation goes fully into
effect, especially if you are taking pictures in European countries
that haven't sought an exemption to include photography.RIECK: If you have the consent of the person on your picture, there's
no problem. You can use the picture. But this consent has to be
informed, as they say. So you have to tell the person in advance what
you want to do with the picture. And also, a big drawback is consent
can be taken back anytime.NELSON: Ziller predicts that despite the new law, photography will
largely continue to be protected as freedom of speech or artistic
expression. Wojciech Wiewiorowski, who is the assistant European data
protection supervisor, adds that fears of draconian prosecution are
overblown.WOJCIECH WIEWIOROWSKI: You should not expect that the data protection
authorities will sit on 26th of May and they will start the witch
hunting and they will start to find out whom to punish first.
I asked for a link because this EU regulation that goes into effect today is specified to organizations and businesses -- not for private individuals who take pictures.
The original post is incorrect. One's pictures taken privately for personal enjoyment as opposed to business purposes are NOT part of the GDPR. Saying "hey, I heard something" can cause incorrect information to go viral.
Read about this EU law that goes into effect today. You might already be receiving emails from companies or organizations about their updated privacy policies. The GDPR governs the business & commercial use of people's data.
For everyone's edification and peace of mind -- from Forbes:
The General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) is a legal framework
that requires businesses to protect the personal data and privacy of
European Union (EU) citizens for transactions that occur within EU
member states. It covers all companies that deal with the data of EU
citizens, specifically banks, insurance companies, and other financial
companies.
More info about the GDPR from Wikipedia.
I asked for a link because this EU regulation that goes into effect today is specified to organizations and businesses -- not for private individuals who take pictures.
The scenario would be you taking a picture in a public place, then posting on Facebook, which is a business, which then must assure privacy of the individuals in the picture. True, Facebook would much more be on the hook, but that rolls down to the user who is the one holding consent.
You are correct, and I did state that earlier, an individual taking pictures commits no error, say to stick in your photo album or hang on your wall. The issue is when it is posted on the Internet and made Public.
I would have thought it would not pertain to individuals, but I am not lawyer and have not read the whole thing (actually the copy I downloaded is 261 pages not 400). The NPR discussion makes some good points though. The reason I mentioned it was because the OP said, new EU data privacy law going into effect today. However here is another reference on the topic of photographing people.
People who post vacation photos on Facebook or Instagram have NOTHING to worry about or habits to change. Jeez - come on people. No one is going to pound on your door at 3:00 AM to demand you remove some post that happens to show some random person's face. Professional photographers have long had to deal with consent and rights.
However, it is ALWAYS proper and respectful to ask permission before specifically taking a person's photograph. By this I mean that the person is the subject of the photo. There isn't much that person can do to you if you don't ask permission and you are in a public place, but it is extremely rude and in some cases culturally faux pas.
No one is going to pound on your door at 3:00 AM to demand you remove some post that happens to show some random person's face.
No, they'll wait until daybreak so they won't have to get a nighttime warrant.:-)
By the way, when I started using Google Street View a few years ago, I noticed that where a person's face would be visible, it's blurred out. I don't know if that was legally required or not, but if not, it seems like it certainly is now in the EU.
Could I ask, how would one know? If I post a photo to my private Facebook page, on a different continent, how would they know and how could they enforce?
