Image Scraping Solutions

Images Scraping from the Web: Issues, Sources, and Technologies

We commonly get requests for scraping images from the web. Pictures and other types of visual content can be copied from web pages and stored in databases.

There are thousands of specific web sources containing publicly available images, like Google Images. We can find any category or topic and scrape all available pictures, including their tags.

Storing Pictures

Graphic data takes a lot of storage space, so you should consider that an additional cost. We use databases like MongoDB or cloud solutions like Amazon S3. They allow us to store and manage images in the most convenient way.

The most common reason for picture scraping is to repost images on other websites. If you’re considering reposting images, make sure you have the proper permissions from the image owners, as not all pictures can be freely reposted.

The second most common reason for scraping images is to create catalogues with photos and sections for the e-commerce industry.

The third most common reason businesses request picture scraping is to track copyright violations. I described such a project below.

We were contacted by the owner of a business that deals with copyright protection for photos and pictures. Не wanted to automatically check on copyright violations of about 20 million photos monthly.

We developed a custom solution that checks all those pictures via Google image search. As Google limits the amount of automatic requests, we had to find work-arounds using proxies and captcha solving services. It was a complex project that included the development and management of a smart proxy system.

Then, if no permitted case is found, the system sends the notification to our client.

To get more information about image scraping and processing, schedule a short free consultation with our data expert!