I'm looking for a free program to stop people saving images from my website and maybe also the source code.

Um, yeah, good luck with that. You are making it publicly available. And, when someone views you web page, the content is downloaded to their computer.

You can make it more difficult for people to get your content, but not impossible. And the means to make it more difficult can create compatability issues.

That being said, I will give you some solutions (most of which I do not recommend, but it's your choice).

To protect images I DO suggest adding a watermark to your photos. Then if someone does steal it they can't pass it off as their own.

You can incorporate some javascript code to disable the right-click and file menu options to view source. However, the source is still in the cache of their computer and javascript can be easily turned off. Plus, it could cause issues.

Another option is code obfuscation which is the process of making your code unreadable by a human. There are tools to do this (use google), but the process can always be reveres by someone who really wants your code. Plus, you have to be careful to always maintain the original as editing you obfuscated code would be near impossible. I don't recommend this either.

Michael J

Well it's more because I'm using many images from other sites(usually for programs that I got permission for)and well I just didn't want it to be too easy for someone to right click and save any of the images but then again it seems way too much of a hassle, especially since I'm not a code expert or running a business.

i understand that one way to make it harder is to use layers ... add a layer on top of your images ... this way when they right click, they will 'download' the layer but not the photo

just telling you what i read one time ... your html editor should have info on how to create layers

happy new year :-)

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Yes, that's one option I overlooked. But, as with all the other suggestions above, it has one very big hole. The image has already been downloaded to the user's computer.

Or the user could take a very complicated, technical approach and press the "Print Screen" button. They now have a copy of the screen including the picture in the web page. A quick crop and they have a perfect copy of the original image.

The only useful process, IMHO, is to use watermarks.

Michael J

good point about the 'print screen'

serge

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Well obviously I can't very well watermark the images I was given permission to use put how would I go about making a watermark for my own images?
The layer idea may only be a little help but it's better than nothing, thanks for letting me know about these options, both of you.

To make a watermark, get an image editing program and find the option to make a watermark. Each program will be different so I can't give you any specifics. But, I'm sure a google search for "[application name] and watermark" would give you some help.

Can't you put a watermark that states "Image provided by [company name]" or "Image used with permission from [company name]"

Michael J

I might be able to do the latter but then I have to ask them all again.

join 2 ideas together, add a layer that contains the watermark ... it won't of course be a real watermark but it will stop people using PRINT SCREEN to get a copy of the image ... the smarter ones will get the original copy from the cache on their computer once they have viewed the page ... you may be able to get 80% protection but it is better than 0% protection

how many people would know about using the cache to get the pictures? may be less than we think ... not sure

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"how many people would know about using the cache to get the pictures? may be less than we think ... not sure"

Well, I personally believe it is very few. But, my position is why go through all of the trouble which would make the pages more error prone, introduce incompatibilities, etc. when you can't really prevent it 100%. As long as 1 person can get the image then that image can be reused on an unpotected site and made available to anyone.

I like your idea about the watermark image over the real image. That's the way to think outside the box. I think the OP would still need permission from the content providers to do that though.

Michael J

I'm stilling looking for a program to increase my websites security but some things I want to know are.
1. If someone saves a complete web page when you're using layers do they get a copy of the original pictures using layers or just the layer or both?
2. Can layers be clear so the pictures look as they are?

1. When a persons saves the page using "Web page complete" or "Web archive" they get the complete page. As already stated - anyone viewing your page already has all the files in their browser cache. You cannot prevent people from copying the content on your page. Period.

All you can do is make it more difficult. And by making it more difficult you run the risk of browser compatability issues. In same cases you can make your site totally inacessible to some users.

2. Layers can be whatever you want them to be. One "trick" as stated above is to put a transparent layer over an image so the user can't right-click and "save as". But, that doesn't prevent them from getting the image from their cache or by simply pressing the "Print Screen" button to take a snapshot of the screen. When searching for album art for my music collection, I run into a lot of sites that try to "protect" their images. None have worked thus far.

And, also, just to be clear, there is no "program" to make your site more secure. Site security is a combination of the coding of the actual pages and the web server settings.

Michael J

Well I've seen them and at onc staged installed such program but that one was a trial or shareware so they seem to be around but they probably I realize they wouldn't make it totally secure but at least more so.

Are you talking about software that you install on your computer to protect your computer from malicious internet sites? That is a different topic entirely. That has nothing to do with protecting your web site from people copying content.

Michael J

No I'm not talking about that, I'll get back to you with a few examples.

Here are a few examples of the kind of programs I'm talking about:
HTML Protector http://www.antssoft.com/htmlprotect...
Advanced HTML Protector http://www.creabit.com/htmlprotect/
HTMLock http://www.atrise.com/htmlock/
HTML Protection Rocket http://www.ans2000.com/a2k_sprhpr.php

I find it interesting that none of those sites use their own software. All their code is available w/o any "blocks" whatsoever. Anyway, I suspect they are nothing more than a combination of many of the things mentioned above, but with some automated tools to allow you to apply those features easily. I bet I could still get the images off of any sites protected with their software. Some of the "features" they claim would most likely require the user to accept an ActiveX component before visiting the site. Because some of the "features" listed just aren't possible with a standard HTML/JavaScript page.

I wish you luck in finding something for free. But, I'm guessing that most programmers who put out free software are the same type of people that would be against such type of protection in th efirst place. But, them again, I've been wrong before.

Michael J

That's different unless we're talking about Open Source. Freeware is provided free but not the source code so why those people be against web page protection?

I'm talking about people's motivation. I believe most people that take the time and effort to put out free software are of the mindset that would be against protecting a web site in such a manner. BUt, that is just my opinion.

You are more than within your right to employ whatever means you want on your site. But, I guarantee you will be sacrificing accessability to your site for all visitors. There is no way to lock down a site completely without requiring the users to download some sort of component. Plus, you would probably have to disallow some browsers as well.

Michael J

I understand that and I just want to implement similar features like no right click on pictures and the watermark idea.

By the way as far as Freeware program makers opinions on web page protection it really seems like never of us would know unless we asked a bunch of them, so either could be correct or it could be a mixed bag.

I know a bit of a late reply but all the same...

Have a look at .htaccess to add your watermark on the fly. there is an example script for it on this website.

http://www.webpronews.com/webdevelo...

If you locate the text "THE BEST THING SINCE BUBBLE WRAP " on the page, the script download is just below that.

Theres a lot more you can do with .htaccess. Unrelated to this issue like blocking bad website bots or disallow access to a specific directory. Definately worth you studying it at our leisure.

No point in using no right click script. It's useless and only serves to irritate users.

If you want to have no right click this one line of code will do it just add it just after the <body> tag

<body oncontextmenu="return false;">

It will also stop them using a keyboard to access it also but I personally would just stay away from it, also some browsers ignore on right click scripts regardless.

If you want to fool a fool regarding your source. add at the start of your html tag >>>> <html> loads of spaces to push down the source code so when they try to view it and if thy thick, they wont notice the notepad scrollbar and just close it but to be honest you'd be wasting your time I'd think.

Resistance is futile.

hmm i guess so