Games Workshop has a famously aggressive IP protection policy. However, the debate is nuanced.
If you are using a digital archive to research old rules or find inspiration for a retro painting project, keep these tips in mind: white dwarf pdf archive
Out-of-print issues are not public domain. Games Workshop retains all legal rights to every issue. Games Workshop has a famously aggressive IP protection
While physical back issues are collector's items, digital archives can often be found through: Warhammer+ Vault white dwarf pdf archive
The trend toward open access publishing means more white dwarf papers will be freely available as PDFs. Major journals in astronomy increasingly offer open access options, and repositories like arXiv and institutional repositories ensure broad availability.