Creative Commons Licenses (CCL) are one for people to give away use of their intellectual property rights, while still maintaining some small level of control. However, just like everything else, even an assigned CCL can be abused or ignored. Worse, most people who assign their works under a CCL never register their work with the Library of Congress (in the U.S.), and therefore have almost zero recourse for combatting any found abuses or infringements.
Thomas Hawk has posted a good warning story that is certainly worth the read for anyone considering using a CCL.
