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Use of Agency Materials
Most of the information on the CDC and ATSDR websites is not subject to copyright, is in the public domain, and may be freely used or reproduced without obtaining copyright permission.
There are, however, a few exceptions. A federal government website may have a mix of public domain and copyright-protected materials. First, some resources, as well as images, on the CDC and ATSDR websites are restricted in their use because they were developed by government contractors or grantees, or have been licensed by a third party. Second, the U.S. government work designation does not apply to works of state and local governments; works of state and local governments may be protected by copyright. Third, copyright laws also differ internationally. While U.S. federal copyright laws may not protect U.S. government works outside the United States, the work may still be protected under the copyright laws of other countries when used in these jurisdictions. Copyright-protected materials featured on the CDC and ATSDR websites should include a copyright statement. However, if in doubt, please write to the contact point for that site.
The following requirements must be followed to utilize CDC’s public domain content:
1) Attribution to the agency that developed the material must be provided in your use of the materials. Such attribution should clearly state the materials were developed by CDC ATSDR and/or HHS (e.g., “Source: CDC”; “Materials developed by CDC”);
2) You must utilize a disclaimer which clearly indicates that your use of the material, including any links to the materials on the CDC, ATSDR or HHS websites, does not imply endorsement by CDC, ATSDR, HHS or the United States Government of you, your company, product, facility, service or enterprise. All such disclaimers must be prominently and unambiguously displayed (e.g., “Reference to specific commercial products, manufacturers, companies, or trademarks does not constitute its endorsement or recommendation by the U.S. Government, Department of Health and Human Services, or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
3) You may not change the substantive content of the materials; and
4) You must state that the material is otherwise available on the agency website for no charge.
Note: Many of CDC’s on-line publications are continually updated as the agency learns more about a specific disease or condition. Occasionally, sites that copy and re-post CDC materials fail to check for updates, which may result in out-of-date information being offered to users. For that reason, we urge you to link directly to our resource documents rather than re-posting. If you do re-post, please check back periodically to see if there are revisions.
Linking to CDC, ATSDR or HHS content should open up a new browser window to our site/page. CDC content should not appear within the original window, framed by the existing site.
CDC LOGO
The CDC and/or ATSDR logo and other related CDC, ATSDR or Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) logos and marks are U.S. government property and may not be used without express written permission from CDC, ATSDR and/or HHS.
These logos and marks are designed to signify official agency products, activities, representatives, and facilities. They should never be used to promote or suggest endorsement of non-CDC, ATSDR or HHS companies, activities, products, events, facilities or services. They should never be used by outside parties to misrepresent the purpose, character, statements or policies of the agencies.
Please note: Any misrepresentation or misappropriation of the agency’s materials, positions or logo/marks in publications sold for profit will be referred to the HHS Office of the Inspector General (and possibly law enforcement and other entities) for investigation and possible enforcement and may be subject to civil money penalties under 42 U.S.C. Section 1320b-10.
PHIL Image Reuse Terms and Conditions
Most images found in the Public Health Image Library (PHIL) are royalty-free and available for personal, professional and educational use in electronic or print media, with appropriate citation. Please credit CDC and the individual photographer if his/her name is given. If used in electronic media, please link back to the PHIL site.
Images other than those in the PHIL may have been licensed for use by CDC from a stock photography service or other copyright holder and the license holder may prohibit republication, retransmission, reproduction or other use of the images. Please contact us with any other questions about reuse of specific images.