Affidavit of Rights requested on the same day my original courses were published

Question

Hello everyone,

I am a new Udemy instructor and today, August 11, 2026, I officially published my first two courses.

A few hours later, I received an email from Udemy Trust & Safety with the subject “[Action Required] Affidavit of Ownership”, asking me to complete and sign an Affidavit of Rights because one or more of my courses may contain content that potentially violates third-party copyright.

This surprised me because the courses were specifically created by me for Udemy.

The narration is my own voice, the practical demonstrations and screen recordings were recorded by me in my own lab environment, and the scripts and teaching materials were created specifically for the courses.

One of the courses teaches networking fundamentals, while the other teaches firewall fundamentals using the open-source OPNsense platform.

I have already replied to Trust & Safety asking if they can identify which course and, if possible, which specific material triggered the copyright flag. I am also carefully reviewing all my course materials before signing the Affidavit.

I would like to ask other instructors:

Has anyone received an Affidavit of Rights / Affidavit of Ownership request immediately after publishing an original course?

If so, did Trust & Safety eventually explain what specific content triggered the review?

Was the issue resolved simply by submitting the Affidavit, or did you need to modify any course content?

I completely understand Udemy’s need to protect intellectual property, and I want to make sure I respond correctly and provide any evidence they may require.

Thank you very much for sharing your experience.

hellencharless · Answer

I have not experienced this myself but I can understand why it would be surprising especially when you have created the courses and recordings yourself.

It sounds like you’re doing the right thing by contacting Trust & Safety before signing anything. Hopefully, they can clarify exactly what triggered the review. Sometimes these automated checks may flag material that is used in a way that isn’t necessarily intentional copyright infringement.

I would be interested to hear what response you receive from Udemy. Hopefully it’s something straightforward that can be resolved without changing your course

hellencharless · Answer

I have seen a similar scenario with copyright requests on a course platform, particularly if it includes technical subject matter and software, documentation, screenshots or other third party material.

If it is truly your own narration, demonstrations, screen recordings, scripts and teaching materials, don't worry. You're right that this sounds like a very careful and thoughtful approach and this should be done through the eyes of Trust & Safety in your business to determine what caused the review.

I would wait to make futile changes until they responded. Hopefully they can direct you to the materials specifically flagged. If you know what they are worried about, then it should be much easier to provide evidence of ownership or make a little tweak if necessary.

As you've just published the courses I'd also maintain copies of the original recordings, scripts, project files and other source materials. If Udemy requires that you show the material you created, they may come in handy.

I hope other instructors here can share their experiences with Affidavit of Rights process. Congratulations on your first two classes!

BrianJackson · Answer

Has anyone received an Affidavit of Rights / Affidavit of Ownership request immediately after publishing an original course?

Yep.  I took a YouTube video on HeyGen AI, wrapped it in some administrative lectures and submitted it as a 30-minute free course.  Udemy Trust & Safety freaked out, sending me emails and insisting I sign their affidavit.

If so, did Trust & Safety eventually explain what specific content triggered the review?

Nope.  Never!

Was the issue resolved simply by submitting the Affidavit, or did you need to modify any course content?

I chose not to pay my lawyer to read their form.  Instead, I ignored T&S, and they eventually banned my course and took ownership of it.  Just the latest tussle with T&A (don't we all feel more trusted and safe?).