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Answered By Library Staff
Last Updated: Jul 16, 2025     Views: 1587

The answer is...maybe! While data and facts cannot be copyrighted, the expression of them might be. See the quote and links for more info. 

To "receive copyright protection, a work must be the result of at least some creative effort on the part of its author. There is no hard and fast rule as to how much creativity is enough. As one example, a work must be more creative than a telephone book’s white pages, which involve a straightforward alphabetical listing of telephone numbers rather than a creative selection of listings." [Via]

This means, at times, you must assess the creativeness of a chart or graph or data listing, etc. Sometimes it is better to assume that they are, indeed, copyrighted so you can play it safe. A risk assessment must be made by the copier/person copying. To understand more about what can and cannot be copyrighted (ie available for your use), see the links below.