Visual China Group (VCG), one of China's largest stock image and media footage providers, on Friday apologized for the use of images of China's national flag and national emblem after coming under fire from the Communist Youth League (CYL) of China.

VCG in a statement apologized for "loose review" of pictures on the platform, adding that the pictures in question had been removed from the website and the review process would be enhanced "according to the relevant laws and regulations to avoid similar situations."

The CYL had asked VCG why the company watermarked China's national flag and national emblem on its website. This followed a wave of controversy over VCG's use of the widely publicized black hole photos released Wednesday. 

"Do you also own the copyright of the national flag and national emblem?" the Youth League asked on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter.

Companies such as China's tech giant Baidu also pointed out that pictures of their company's logo were also watermarked and included on VCG's website without notice.

Not long after the release of the black hole photo, netizens found that the company had claimed copyright of the image on its website, meaning anyone who uses this image for commercial purposes must pay VCG, or they may be charged with infringement.

VCG claimed that they are authorized to use the image, while the European Southern Observatory (ESO), which owns the image's copyright, said that VCG never contacted them regarding the black hole image and stated that VCG's copyright claim is illegal since anyone who wants to use the picture on ESO's website needs to credit the company. 

ESO's website has a clear statement that the images, videos and music distributed on the website may on a non-exclusive basis be reproduced without fee, provided the credit is clear and visible.

The manager of VCG has been summoned by the local regulatory authorities, and its website was closed for a thorough rectification.

VCG's revenue hit 48 million yuan in the first half of 2018, up 25.84 percent year on year.

VCG, often dubbed the "Getty Images of China," was founded in 2000 in Beijing. The image provider has the largest pool of contributors, and most of the large-scale media agencies in China are VCG's clients.