# Evaluating Intellectual Property Guardrails of Generative Image Models: A Technical Report

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.02582 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.02582/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Watermarking generated content and models, one of 12 directions in LLM safety and security.
- Builds on 17 of its 28 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 1 Jul 2026.

## Placed in

- LLM safety and security / [Watermarking generated content and models](https://mlsanity.com/safety/watermarking-generated-content-and-models/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 17 of 17)

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- [Extracting Training Data from Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.13188/) (2023)
- [Diffusion Art or Digital Forgery? Investigating Data Replication in Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2212.03860/) (2022)
- [Red-Teaming the Stable Diffusion Safety Filter](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.04610/) (2022)
- [Measuring Style Similarity in Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.01292/) (2024)
- [Detecting, Explaining, and Mitigating Memorization in Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.21720/) (2024)
- [Fantastic Copyrighted Beasts and How (Not) to Generate Them](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.14526/) (2024)
- [On Copyright Risks of Text-to-Image Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.12803/) (2023)
- [T2I-RiskyPrompt: A Benchmark for Safety Evaluation, Attack, and Defense on Text-to-Image Model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.22300/) (2025)
- [Can Large Vision-Language Models Detect Images Copyright Infringement from GenAI?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.16618/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Generative image models are capable of producing images that bear a strong resemblance to, or replicate, recognizable intellectual property (IP). In this technical report, we present a benchmark and automated evaluation pipeline to test for evidence of IP guardrails in generative image models along with the propensity for these models to generate images with recognizable IP. The IP categories we tested include fictional characters, celebrity likeness, and commercial logos and do not encompass the full range of IP which may be implicated by image generation models. We evaluated fourteen widely used text-to-image models, including three self-hosted open weights models and eleven private models. While all of the private models were observed to refuse generations at some level due to IP guardrails, the frequency of generation refusals varied substantially among models. The refusal rates also varied considerably across the different IP categories tested. Commercial logos were refused least frequently and were successfully generated at the highest rate, on average. Though the rate varies, all models tested readily generated images containing recognizable IP as of March 2026.