CC0 is not a license. It is a public domain dedication made by the rights holder. Creative Commons says that, unlike its other licenses, CC0 is GPL compatible and acceptable for software. If you consume CC0 code, you owe no attribution under its terms, but you should still record it in your inventory.
What the FAQ says
The Creative Commons FAQ states: "CC0 is not a license; it is a public domain dedication." It is meant for rights holders who want to put their work into the public domain before copyright expires.
Because it is a dedication, there are no attribution conditions to follow in the way that MIT or Apache require notices. That is attractive for tiny utilities and sample code.
Who can use CC0
Only the rights holder can dedicate a work. The FAQ says that creators who want to dedicate their own work should use CC0, and that works already in the worldwide public domain should be marked with the Public Domain Mark instead. CC licenses should not be applied to works already in the public domain.
So if a file says CC0, ask whether the person who applied it actually held the rights. Code copied from another project and relabeled CC0 does not become public domain.
For consumers
- Treat CC0 as permissive in your inventory, with no attribution step.
- Confirm the dedication is on the code and not only on some assets.
- Check provenance. Is the author the original creator?
- Keep a copy of the file or page that carried the dedication, because it is evidence if the origin is questioned.
For authors
If you want no conditions at all on your code, CC0 is a legitimate choice, and Creative Commons says it works for software. Think first about whether that is what you want. A permissive license such as MIT keeps your copyright notice with the code, which some authors prefer for credit. CC0 gives that up.
Also consider your employer. If you wrote code at work, your employer may hold the rights, and you cannot dedicate what you do not own.
How it shows up in a scan
Scanners may report CC0 under a license identifier. Your policy should say whether CC0 is allowed for code. A policy written only around software licenses may flag it as unknown, which creates noise. Add it to the approved list if your counsel agrees.
For related reading, see permissive license explained and can you license software under Creative Commons.
Safeguard's SBOM and dependency scanning list components so you can review these cases, and policies and gates can enforce your approved list. You can try a free scan.
Quick check
Do I need to credit CC0 code?
CC0 itself does not require attribution. Many teams credit anyway as good practice.
Is CC0 the same as MIT?
No. CC0 is a public domain dedication. MIT is a license that requires keeping its notices.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
