I have a lot of photos on my web sites and also spent a lot of time drawing a map. Every once is a while I find my photos and the map on other web pages. I never try to come down hard on them for a couple of reasons. First I am not in the photo business. And, second, I don't actually know where they got the photos from. So many people have used my photos without asking my permission that they may have taken the photo from someone else's web page. They may have even received permission from the owner of that web site to use my photo.

So how does Getty Images know that a particular person actually got the photo from them? With their photos on Google Images, like hundreds of mine are, they could have got them from someone four or five generations down the line and most of them may not of know where the original photo came from.

How can I prove the person actually took the photos from my web site when so many people are using my photos?

I don't think Getty Images can prove that you actually took the photo from them either, and they would probably have trouble collecting their ridiculous fees in court. That is one of the main points, their fees are outrageous which makes it look like extortion.

Since you stopped using the photos immediately after they notified you, you did the right thing, and that should be the most that they can demand of you.

I think that Getty Images' demanding payment, with no other way to satisfy them, for the use of photos looks too much like extortion to me. If Google were notified that Getty Images is using those tactics, they may want to remove all of their photos. Google probably wouldn't want to get in the middle of problems like Getty Images is creating.