What is a text-and-data-mining exception?

A TDM exception lets you copy works to analyse them computationally, including for AI training, without the rightsholder's permission in defined circumstances. The EU and UK both have such exceptions, but they differ sharply on whether commercial use is covered.

How does the EU DSM Directive treat AI training?

Article 3 lets research organisations mine lawfully accessed works with no opt-out override. Article 4 lets anyone, including commercial actors, mine lawfully accessed works unless the rightsholder has reserved the use with a machine-readable opt-out such as a TDMRep signal.

Can I train a commercial model on scraped data in the UK?

Not under the current statutory exception. UK section 29A of the CDPA only covers computational analysis for non-commercial research. Commercial AI training on third-party copyright works needs a licence, so the tool flags that path as blocked without one.

When do I need a GDPR lawful basis?

Whenever the training data contains personal data about identifiable people. Consent specific to training, or legitimate interests backed by a documented balancing test with transparency and an objection route, can provide a basis. Special-category data needs an additional Article 9 condition.

Is this legal advice?

No. TDM and AI training law is evolving and contested, and database rights, contractual terms, and sui generis rights may also apply. Treat the result as a scoping aid and take qualified legal advice before training on third-party data.

AI Training Data Rights Checker

Training an AI model on data you did not create raises two separate legal questions at once: do you have the copyright right to mine the works, and if the data contains personal information, do you have a lawful basis under data-protection law? This checker assesses both axes and combines them into a single verdict.

How it works

The tool walks two independent legal tests and reports the worst-case of the two:

Copyright / TDM. If the source is your own content or a licence that permits training, you are clear. Otherwise it relies on a text-and-data-mining exception. Under the EU DSM Directive, Article 3 covers research organisations with no opt-out override, while Article 4 covers commercial use unless a machine-readable opt-out is present. Under the UK CDPA section 29A, only non-commercial research is covered, so commercial training needs a licence.
Data protection. If personal data is present, you need a GDPR lawful basis — specific consent, or legitimate interests with a documented balancing test. No basis means the use is blocked.

The overall status is the more restrictive of the two verdicts.

Example and notes

A commercial team scraping the open web in the EU with no opt-out signals present gets a permitted copyright verdict under Article 4, but if the data includes people’s posts they still need a lawful basis, so legitimate interests with a balancing test moves the result to permitted-with-conditions. The same scrape for a commercial model in the UK is blocked on the copyright axis without a licence. This is a scoping aid, not legal advice — database rights, site terms, and unsettled case law can change the answer.