Reuse licences
Setting legal permissions for data reuse
When publishing research data, data producers must consider how the data can and should be reused by other researchers. These are also known as reuse licences. Data producers should specify intended uses by licensing the data according to their level of detail, sensitivity and confidentiality, and in line with the information provided to the participants. Data collections can be made available broadly under two types of reuse licences: open and bespoke licences.
These reuse licences establish who can use the data and how the data can be reused, including conditions on future redistribution and adaptation of content.
An Open Licence allows anyone to freely access, modify, and share the data, usually requiring minimal conditions, such as attribution to the original creator. The most widely used open licences framework is the Creative Commons licence. CC licences allow creators to easily communicate the rights, that they wish to keep, and the rights, which they wish to waive for reuse of their intellectual Creative Commons (CC) licences allow creators to easily communicate the rights they wish to keep, and the rights they wish to waive.
Various CC licences exist:
- Attribution CC BY
- Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA
- Attribution-No Derivatives CC BY-ND
- Attribution-NonCommercial CC BY-NC.
The table below outlines commonly used data licences, summarising their key features and indicating the types of reuse each licence permits.
| Licence | Can I copy and redistribute the work? | Is it required to attribute the author? | Can I use the work commercially? | Am I allowed to adapt the work? | Can I change the licence when redistributing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CC0 | Y | N | Y | Y | Y |
| CC BY | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| CC BY-SA | Y | Y | Y | Y | N |
| CC BY-ND | Y | Y | Y | N | Y |
| CC BY-NC | Y | Y | N | Y | Y |
| CC BY NC-SA | Y | Y | N | Y | N |
| CC BY NC-ND | Y | Y | N | N | Y |
CESSDA Data Management Expert Guide
Choose a Licence may be useful in helping you choose an appropriate licence for your data.
While Creative Commons licences are applicable for a wider range of creative works, other licences may be more appropriate, such as the Open Data Commons Licence for databases or structured data.
In the UK the Open Government Licence (OGL) is used for Crown copyright works published by the UK Government and other public sector bodies alongside the Open Parliament Licence (OPL) which applies specifically to UK Parliamentary content, allowing reuse with attribution. Where data is derived from Crown material joint Crown copyright will apply and data producers should provide appropriate attribution to the original work(s) used.
Restricted or bespoke licences
Where data cannot be made open due to legal, ethical or contractual constraints, bespoke reuse licences might need to apply. These licences typically include conditions such as:
- restricting access to approved users
- prohibiting onward sharing
- limiting commercial use
- requiring secure handling and eventual deletion.
Responsible repositories use these agreements to safeguard sensitive or restricted social science data and to ensure compliance with participant consent and data protection obligations.
The UK Data Service End User Licence Agreement (PDF) is one example of a bespoke reuse licence. Responsible repositories will make use of these agreements to safeguard data, ensure ethical use, and uphold participant confidentiality throughout the research lifecycle.
Where more sensitive data are shared, additional agreements might apply, and where confidential and/or personal data are shared a Data Sharing Agreement might also be required. All these agreements are legally binding and ensure that data are used legally and ethically; therefore, whether data producers are accessing and using existing data, or collecting data from human participants and planning to share it, understanding and applying appropriate reuse licences is a key consideration.