If anyone uses a pirated graphics stock material or any copyright clipart without permission, and then edit it, modifies it and after adding all that dingbats, shine, photoshop, flash.. etc etc etc completely changes the face of the original graphic then who own the copyright of that final material.
Ive been working with public domain and copyright for a long time. Usually in a case like this. If the original artwork is copyright, the derived work would be infringement unless it changed beyond the point of similarity. I wouldn't take my chances unless you know that the work is creative commons or public domain.
Jmn187 has it just about right. Officially, creation of any derivative work made of someone's copyrighted work is a violation of copyright law. It would have to be completely unrecognizable as the original "pirated" work to be able to hold its own copyright and even then, I would argue that it's a violation. If you've done that much work to it, start again from the beginning and make it from scratch or find a public domain image to work with... Deena ________________________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.
Actually I do use some materials which are available through the file sharing forums. And i suppose some of them are not free but I can't distinguish which ones. But now few sites have started copying directly the finished gfx frm my site. I am afraid of filling the DMCA complaint against them as I am also not clean in this matter. I think I should hire a designer now who can make cliparts. Thanks to both of you.