Not on its own. A public post on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Behance or a blog shows that a version of your work was shared by the date of the post, as long as the post, the account and the platform’s records survive. It doesn’t show who made the work, that nobody made something similar earlier, or what your original file looked like. Copyright usually exists from the moment you create and fix the work, so a post doesn’t create rights either. Keep your original files, your working files and an independent dated record as well, and think twice before posting work you may want to patent or sell exclusively.
Table of Contents
What a public post does show
A post can be useful evidence. It can show:
- that a version of the work was public no later than the post date;
- the account that shared it, and how people responded;
- where and how the work was first presented, which can matter in a copying dispute.
If someone copies your work later, an earlier dated post is often the first thing people point to. Our guide to how to prove someone copied your work explains how to build on it.
Where a post falls short
- It isn’t your original file. Platforms usually show their own resized or re-encoded copy, so it won’t match your original file byte for byte, and it often drops the file’s metadata.
- Posts can change or vanish. Captions can be edited, posts deleted, accounts suspended or lost, and platforms close. If the post is gone, so is your easy proof.
- Posting first isn’t making first. Someone else can post your work before you do, or claim your post copied theirs. A post date says when something was shared, not when or by whom it was made.
- Screenshots of posts are weak on their own. They are easy to edit and hard to verify. See can screenshots be used as evidence?
- Archives help, but have limits. An archived copy on the Wayback Machine can support a date, but it only captures what was crawled. See is the Wayback Machine proof a page existed?
Posting doesn’t create copyright, and it can cost you other rights
In the US, the Copyright Office says your work is protected “the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form”. The UK, the EU and most other countries work the same way, so you don’t need to post anything to have copyright.
Posting can cause problems elsewhere:
- Inventions and designs. Showing an invention publicly before filing can affect whether you can patent it. See can you patent an invention you showed publicly years ago?
- Unfinished work. Once a draft, beat or concept is public, anyone can see it and take ideas from it.
- Exclusive deals. Some publishers, labels, competitions and clients want work that hasn’t been shared before.
What to keep as well as the post
- Your original files. The camera RAW, the layered file, the session or project file and the first export, unchanged.
- Your process. Sketches, drafts, versions and work-in-progress files that show how the work developed. How artists show when they made something sets out a simple routine.
- An independent dated record before you post. A timestamp records your original file’s fingerprint, so you can later show that exact file existed no later than a certain time, without making it public.
- A record of the post itself. The post URL, a saved copy of the page and an archived copy if you can get one.
- Registration, where it helps. In the US, the Copyright Office explains that you have to register a US work before suing for infringement, and that registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney’s fees. See what evidence helps with copyright without registration for what to keep if you don’t register.
How a timestamp fits in
TimeBinder® records your file’s fingerprint on the Bitcoin blockchain. The fingerprint is made in your browser and the file stays on your device, so you can date unfinished or private work without sharing it. A TimeBind shows that the exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches its fingerprint. It doesn’t show who made the work or who owns it, so keep it with your originals and process files.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Does posting on Instagram give me copyright?
No. In most countries, copyright exists once you create and fix the work. Posting doesn’t create or register it. A post can help show when a version was shared.
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Can a post date be used as evidence?
Often, yes, as one piece of evidence. Its weight depends on whether the post still exists, whether its date can be checked, and what other evidence supports it.
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What if someone posted my work before I did?
Gather your original files, drafts and any dated records made before their post. Those can show your work existed by an earlier recorded time, even though their post came first. For a serious dispute, get legal advice.
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Is it safer to keep work private until it’s finished?
Often, yes. You can keep unfinished work private and still have a dated record by timestamping the files. Only the fingerprint is recorded, so the work itself isn’t published.
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Should I timestamp before or after posting?
Before. A timestamp of your original file made before the post shows the original existed by then, which a post of a resized copy can’t show.
Date your work before you share it
Your first Pooled TimeBind is free, with no credit card required. After that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15. See plans and pricing
Related: Your footage in an AI-processed music video: what creators should keep.
Related: YouTube AI disclosure: what video creators and podcasters should keep.
