How to prevent downloading images and video files

Question

How to prevent downloading images and video files from my website? Is it possible? What would be the best way to do this?

Answer 1

In short, no. If someone can view an image or video in their browser then they have, by definition, downloaded it. That's how the web works - it is client server based. Whatever you can view in your browser (client) has been transfered to your computer from the remote website (server).

Answer 2

You can set the image to be background image and have a transparent foreground image.

Answer 3

No, it's not possible.

If you can see it, you can get it.

Answer 4

You can mark folders or files so that they don't have read access (any of the main web servers support this). This allows you to store them on the server without any level of access to the outside world. You may want to do this if you have a service that generates images for someone else to download later, or if you use your web account for FTP access, but don't want anyone to view the files. (i.e. upload a .bak file to the server for someone else to FTP down again).

However, as others have said, getting into copyright areas where people can view the image or video but not save them locally is not fully possibly, although there are tools to discourage illegal usage.

Answer 5

I'd like to add a more philosophical comment. The whole intent of the internet, particularly the World Wide Web, is to share data. If you don't want people to download a picture/video/document, don't put it on the web. It's really that simple. Too many people think they can impose their own rules on an existing design. Those who want to post content on the web, and control its distribution, are looking to have their cake and eat it too.

Answer 6

Don't post them to your site.

Otherwise it is not possible.