Can I Use Javascript to Achieve This?

**Thuita Maina** · 03-30-2016, 04:06 AM

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Hi Folks!

I want every time anyone tries to copy or download content from my website, an alert box appears warning, "The contents of this website are copyrighted. Unauthorized use is strictly prohibited." I am thinking Javascript can accomplish that because all I need is a function that detects copying and downloading, and then adding an "if" statement to display an alert box bearing the warning message. My limitation is that I know not which and where to get such a function. Please help, thank you.

Thuita.
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**felgall** · 03-30-2016, 06:02 AM

HTML can accomplish that without any need for JavaScript. Your visitors will have already downloaded the page before they see anything at all.

**Thuita Maina** · 03-30-2016, 07:51 AM

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Thank you felgall for the response. Am afraid I don't know how to achieve that with HTML. Please guide me; thank you.
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**deathshadow** · 03-30-2016, 08:21 AM

I believe Felgall was being sarcastic.

You can put a message warning about it in your HTML, but there's not a blasted thing you can do to ACTUALLY stop or even intercept any attempt to save the page or copies of it's content. By it's very nature HTML and web content is in fact insecure as the user MUST download it in order for the browser to show ANY of it. The copy already exists before you're scripting would even RUN!

... much less anything you did in scripting can easily be slapped aside by disabling scripting or layering user javascript atop it using something like greasemonkey.

Hence why when people ask me "How do I stop people from downloading/copying my content" the ONLY advice I can give is "don't put it online in the first place!"

**Thuita Maina** · 03-30-2016, 05:36 PM

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Thank you deathshadow for the response. Actually, my aim is just to warn people but not to stop them from copying or downloading. But the warning should appear only when they attempt to copy or download. How can I do that with HTML?
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**felgall** · 03-30-2016, 08:55 PM

Originally Posted by Thuita Maina

But the warning should appear only when they attempt to copy or download. How can I do that with HTML?
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No you can't do that at all - they have to download the HTML BEFORE they can see anything you display via HTML. For them to get the warning before they attempt to download anything you need to transmit it telepathically before they finish clicking on any link to your site or before they finish typing your domain name in their address bar.

The web works by first downloading all the files a web page uses and only then displaying them in the browser. By the time they can see the HTML they already have a copy of all your files.

**StrawberryF** · 04-06-2016, 06:50 AM

HTML and web content is in fact insecure as the user MUST download it in order for the browser to show ANY of it. The copy already exists before you're scripting would even RUN!

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