Obtaining permission

By default, anything that involves an ‘intellectual effort’ in its creation is copyright protected. The creator has exclusive rights to that creation. The requirements for re-use include:

1: You must be given permission from the rights holder (in this case the creator)

2: You will usually need a data sharing agreement or license

3: You must ensure permissions to access, use and share data are clear. To achieve this you will need:

  • explicit licences and agreements
  • to understand relevant legal restrictions or permissions
What if the datasets are not open?

You may find negotiation is required with the rights holder to see what can be done to ensure third party data can be used.

It must be used in a way that is compatible with the policies and processes set out in the conditions of the grant or those in country. 

Your role could include helping data holders to address any concerns they have related to data sharing or to set up a data sharing agreement.

Open, shared and closed data graphic