Can I be forced to remove from my website a picture of someone who had no reasonable expectation of privacy?

Question

...and if I'm profiting from that site (through subscriptions or advertising), could that person be entitled to any compensation?

Answer 1

If there is a profit involved and you have no release or permission, you need to pay them or take it down.  

Answer 2

Definitely, yes.

The flip side of privacy is the right of a public figure to control who profits from the use of their image.

Answer 3

No, and maybe.

If you took the picture, legally, then you own the copyright and can publish the picture as you see fit.

If you are making commercial use of their likeness then they might well be able to get a court to order them to be compensated. How much depends on how much the site makes, how much exposure there is, and how much a model might reasonably have charged for the shoot.

Richard

Answer 4

Probably not. Huge numbers of people have their pictures taken in public every day and have absolutely no rights in how they are used, especially if they are not recognizable, or if they're not the specific subject of the photos.  For example, take pictures at a public event (say, a political speech) and you do not need "release" or permission from anyone who happens to be walking by in the background. But if your caption says, "Note my boss is there in the park with his mistress," you may have a different kettle o' fish.