No upfront fees. You pay only after removal. How it works
Legal
Copyright is the most formal route on Reddit. It works when you own the work. The notice must be correct, because it is a legal statement.
No upfront fees. You pay only after removal.
This is for you if
Your photos, video or artwork were uploaded without permission.
Your written work or paid content was copied onto Reddit.
A leaked file or course is being shared.
You already sent a takedown that was ignored or rejected.
How Reddit handles this
Reddit follows a notice-and-takedown process consistent with the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act. When it receives a valid notice, it removes the content identified and notifies the account holder where appropriate. Reddit's July to December 2024 report shows the system at scale: 54,110 notices, of which 40,527 (74%) were actioned in whole or in part, leading to 229,226 pieces of content being removed.
Under 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3), a notice needs the signature of someone authorised to act, identification of the copyrighted work, identification of the infringing material and where it is, the complainant's contact details, a statement of good-faith belief that the use is not authorised, and a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the notice is accurate and the sender is authorised. Reddit rejects incomplete notices, and so do the courts.
A DMCA notice is a legal statement. Section 512(f) makes knowing material misrepresentation actionable, and in Lenz v. Universal Music the Ninth Circuit held that copyright owners must consider fair use before sending a takedown notice. Copyright also only protects original creative works you own or control. It cannot be used to remove criticism, opinion or facts, and Reddit's own report shows it rejecting trademark notices for exactly that kind of misuse.
How we handle it
We check that you own or control the work and that the use is not covered by a defence.
A DMCA notice with the required statements, the original work and each infringing URL.
Through Reddit's copyright process, to its designated agent.
If a counter-notice arrives, you decide whether to take the matter further. We explain what that means first.
Each action on your case is recorded with its date. You can read the log at any time in your client portal, and reply to us there.
The rulebook
A DMCA notice is a legal process, and Reddit's rules on legal compliance sit alongside it.
Posting material you do not own without permission can also break Reddit's rule on keeping things legal, on top of copyright law. The DMCA notice is the formal route, and it must be accurate to be accepted.
Paraphrased from the official Reddit Rules. Moderators also enforce each community's own rules, under Reddit's Moderator Code of Conduct.
By the numbers
74%
of copyright takedown notices actioned
Of 54,110 notices, 40,527 were actioned in whole or in part. The notices asked for 459,697 pieces of content to be removed; 229,226 were removed.
Source: Reddit Transparency Report · July to December 2024
Legal background
The DMCA sets out what a notice must say, what happens next and what a false notice risks. That is why accuracy matters here more than anywhere.
Statute · United States · 1998
Section 512(c) sets the notice-and-takedown system. A valid notice must identify the copyrighted work and the infringing material, give the complainant's contact details, and include a good-faith statement and a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the notice is accurate and the sender is authorised. Section 512(f) makes knowing material misrepresentation in a notice actionable.
Why it matters here: Copyright is the most formal and most reliable removal route, but only for works you own. It cannot be used to remove criticism or facts.
Court case · U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit · 2015
801 F.3d 1126 (9th Cir. 2015)
The Ninth Circuit held that copyright owners must consider fair use before sending a takedown notice. A notice sent without that consideration can support a misrepresentation claim under Section 512(f).
Why it matters here: A DMCA notice is a legal statement. Careless or pretextual notices carry real risk, so every notice should be checked before it is sent.
Court case · U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit · 2004
391 F.3d 1000 (9th Cir. 2004)
The MPAA sent a takedown notice to the host of a website that said it offered movie downloads. The site's owner argued that the MPAA never checked. The Ninth Circuit held that the "good faith belief" a sender needs is a subjective one, so the sender was not liable without actual knowledge that the claim was false.
Why it matters here: It sets a high bar for challenging a wrongful takedown notice. That is why a notice should be accurate to begin with, and why wrongful notices are hard to punish.
Real public cases
A public case of a trademark claim on Reddit that did not succeed, which shows the difference between a valid claim and an unwelcome one.
Public case · 2024 · not a client of ours
Public case · 2015 · not a client of ours
The outcome
The post is removed after Reddit accepts the notice, and shows a removal notice such as "Removed by legal team".
The poster can submit a counter-notice. If they do, there are fixed steps, and we explain each one before it happens.
Notices are logged. If the same account keeps copying your work, earlier notices strengthen the next one.
Before you do anything
A notice that is wrong can expose you to a claim. Confirm you own the work first.
A notice should name the specific material. Broad claims get rejected.
Criticism is not copyright infringement, and misusing the process can backfire.
While we work
Sign in with a one-time code sent to your email. Follow the case, reply to us, add links and evidence, and read your invoice there. The invoice is issued only after removal.
What we need
Case studies
Questions
No. Copyright protects original creative works. It cannot be used to remove criticism or facts.
The poster can dispute the takedown. Then the content may be restored unless you file a court action. We explain this before you decide.
Related
Someone is posing as you or your company. We pursue removal.
Learn moreRemove a Reddit post, or delete the whole discussion under it.
Learn moreRemove a Reddit comment, reply or exchange.
Learn moreAll Reddit removal services Communities we work in Legal references