Creative Commons is a nonprofit organization that enables the sharing and use of creativity and knowledge through free legal tools.
Their easy-to-use copyright licenses provide a simple, standardized way to give the public permission to share and use your creative work — on conditions of your choice. CC licenses let you easily change your copyright terms from the default of “all rights reserved” to “some rights reserved.”
Creative Commons licenses are not an alternative to copyright. They work alongside copyright and enable you to modify your copyright terms to best suit your needs.
When you create something, you already have the copyright, but you can add the Creative Commons license layer to that work. YOU ARE NOT giving up your copyright, but specifically modifying your copyright to indicate how that content can be used by others.
Creative Commons, a non-profit organization, has created six licenses for copyright holders to grant permissions so that others can use their works under specified conditions.
There is also the CC0 tool that enables copyright holders to waive all rights and place a work in the public domain.