Almost every website you visit has the good old copyrigh protection down the bottom but how do you know they actually hold the copyright and havent just put it up to deter people from using their design etc.

There must be a way of checking the site is actually copyright protected?

If you create it, it's considered YOUR copyright, it is not necessary to register it to be 'officially' copyrighted.

All content is copyrighted automatically. The UK Copyright Service (I don't know where you are personally, but it's pretty much the same the world over):

A very common question is, “How do I go about copyrighting my work?” or “How do I get my work copyrighted, or copywritten?”. This demonstrates a miss-understanding of the legal position and how copyright actually occurs.

Copyright itself is an automatic right that occurs at the point the work is fixed in a tangible manner, i.e. when it is recorded or written down. It is therefore not strictly speaking possible to have your work copywritten, (indeed this is not even a real word), as you will already hold the copyright.

There is a distinct difference between the existence of copyright and registration. Copyright exists whether the work is registered or not, but without registration you may have a difficult time proving it in a dispute. It is perhaps best to think of registration as insurance in case someone decides to steal your work.

There are plenty of ways of proving a copyright is yours. Screenwriters, for example, do not register their copyrights with the government, but instead with the Screenwriters Guild.

Originally Posted by wayfarer07

There are plenty of ways of proving a copyright is yours. Screenwriters, for example, do not register their copyrights with the government, but instead with the Screenwriters Guild.

I agree. I hope this could help. I don't know much about this but if ever i encountered one.

Well said LadynRed simple, sweet and direct.

Here are some interesting facts I stumbled upon.

Link