At submission every participant confirms that they own the image, or hold all rights and permissions necessary to submit it. That confirmation is required before an entry can be made, and it is recorded.

We do not and cannot automatically determine whether an uploaded image is original. There is no reverse-image search, no provenance check, and no automated infringement detection on this service. Claiming otherwise would be untrue.

Every entry is reviewed by a person before publication, but that review checks the submission rules — it is not, and cannot be, proof of ownership.

If you believe a published entry infringes your copyright, use the Report this image control on the entry’s page, or write to us through the contact page.

Please include:

• The photo number of the entry, in the form #000123.
• A description of the work you say has been infringed, and where your original can be seen.
• Confirmation that you are the rights holder or authorised to act for them.
• A statement that your report is made in good faith and is accurate.
• A way for us to contact you.

Reports made in bad faith, or to remove a competitor, are themselves a breach of these terms.

An entry found to infringe is removed from public view. The decision is recorded internally in an append-only log so that it can be reviewed later.

Where removal follows the participant’s breach of the rights warranty, no refund is given — see refunds. Repeat infringement may result in account suspension.

An issued number is permanent, and is never reissued. Numbering runs in an unbroken sequence from #000001, and a number belongs to the entry it was issued to.

If an entry is removed, its number is retired with it — it does not return to circulation, and it is never given to anyone else. The competition is a fixed historical record, and that record includes its gaps.

If your entry was removed and you believe the report was mistaken, or that you do hold the necessary rights, write to us through the contact page with the evidence. We will review it.

Statutory notice-and-takedown regimes — such as the DMCA in the United States — require a designated agent registered in that jurisdiction.

One in Million does not claim compliance with any specific statutory regime, and has not designated an agent under one. We would rather say so than claim a status we do not hold. The reporting route above is open to every rights holder, and every report is reviewed by a person.

The same applies to trademarks, and to images of identifiable people who have not consented. Report them the same way.