Protect and Defend

Recently, there have been several stories circling the blogosphere about the need to protect your blog and yourself. Read this post on Lilly's Life and you'll see why it's important. I've been doing a little research on the topic and I've found some really simple, and free, ways to protect and defend your blog.

Watermark your images. You can do this on Photoshop by adding a digimarc or you can do it on Picmarkr for free if you don't have Photoshop.

Digimarc in Photoshop - invisible

Little symbol in top left hand corner, done with Picmarkr

Watch for Plagiarism - You can do this by by using Copyscape, just type in your URL and it will let you know if there's any content out there that matches yours. You can also add a banner to your website that will "protect" in legal terms. Another site that does this is CopyrightSpot

Just Say No - Let your readers know that they don't have permission to use your content. Many people tend to assume that unless otherwise stated, online content is up for grabs. You can write your own little blurb, or put up a button, badge or header. Check out this site for some cute buttons!

It never hurts to take a few extra precautions and it can safe you time and peace of mind. In other news, I will be announcing the winner of the Giveaway tomorrow!