Getting an accurate scan
Upload the final version
Scan the file the way you actually intend to publish it. If you scan a rough cut and then add music, overlays, or clips afterward, the scan no longer reflects your content. Whenever your edit changes, scan again; it's free and unlimited.
Pick the right jurisdiction
The country selector matters more than most people expect. Fair use in the United States, fair dealing in the United Kingdom and Australia, and Indonesia's moral-rights framework can reach different conclusions about the same clip. Choose the country whose law is most relevant to you, usually where you live or where your audience and any potential claimant are based.
Know the format limits
- Supported formats: MP4, MOV, AVI, MP3, WAV, JPG, PNG, and GIF. HEIC is not supported; convert it to JPG or PNG first.
- Maximum file size is 50 MB. For long videos, a compressed export scans just as well as a full-quality one.
- For video, five representative frames are extracted and analyzed. Brief flashes of content between those frames can be missed, so if a specific moment worries you, screenshot it and scan the image directly.
How to read your results
The risk score is a starting point, not a verdict
The 0–100 score is an average of the risk ratings across common use cases, from commercial publishing to private use. It tells you how much attention the file deserves, not whether it is legal. Treat it like a smoke detector: a high reading means investigate, a low reading means nothing obvious was detected. Neither is a legal conclusion.
Reverse search matches need interpretation
Finding your image on other websites does not automatically mean it is copyrighted or off-limits. Many images online are public domain, Creative Commons, or freely licensed. What matters is who created the work and under what license it is offered. Open the source pages, look for license information, and check whether the earliest source is a rights holder or a stock library.
When to seek professional advice
UnStrike is designed to help you decide whether professional legal advice is needed. Seek it when: the content is central to a commercial product or monetized channel; the scan flags recognizable brands, characters, music, or people; you have already received a claim or strike; or the stakes of being wrong are high. A short consultation with an IP attorney is far cheaper than a dispute.
Rules for using UnStrike
These rules exist to keep the tool free, fast, and available. Breaking them may result in your access being limited or blocked.
- Only upload content you lawfully possess. Do not upload files that are illegal in your jurisdiction, invade someone's privacy, or contain malicious code.
- Use the tool to avoid infringement, not to evade detection. Testing how to disguise someone else's work so platforms won't catch it is misuse, and we will not support it.
- Don't automate or overload the service. Bulk scanning through scripts or bots degrades the tool for everyone and will be rate-limited or blocked.
- Don't misrepresent results. Scan reports are not certificates of clearance and must not be presented to platforms, clients, or courts as official copyright determinations.
- Be a reasonable adult about disputes. If a platform strikes your content, the dispute is between you, the platform, and the rights holder. UnStrike is not a party to it and cannot intervene.
Practical habits that prevent strikes
The scanner catches a lot, but good habits catch more:
- Keep receipts. Save proof of license or purchase for every stock asset, font, and music track you use, in a folder named after the project.
- Default to licensed libraries. Unsplash, Pexels, and Pixabay for visuals; Epidemic Sound, Artlist, or the YouTube Audio Library for music.
- Verify music separately. UnStrike reads transcripts and metadata, not audio fingerprints; a recognition app like Shazam is the right tool for identifying a track.
- Watch the background. Posters, TV screens, radio audio, and branded products in the background of your own footage are among the most common accidental claims.
- When in doubt, replace. If you cannot establish where an asset came from, swapping it for a licensed alternative is almost always cheaper than finding out the hard way.
Questions
If something here is unclear, or you've hit a problem with the site, email helpmeunstrike@gmail.com or use the contact page.