Copyright Laws And Plagiarism: How To Stay Compliant

Are you a student dealing with your academic assignments? Or are you a beginner writer or content creator who has just entered the writing field? If so, this guide is going to be very helpful for you. 

In this article, we will help you understand the two most important concepts that will help you in your entire career. Here, we are talking about plagiarism and copyright.

Not only will you learn what they exactly mean, but also we will tell you how they relate to each other. Most importantly, we will provide you with some proactive tips. 

So, let’s get started.

Understanding Plagiarism And Copyright 

Before we understand the connection between plagiarism and copyright, it’s necessary to have a clear perception of both these terms. So, let’s look at what exactly they mean. 

Plagiarism

Oxford University states that plagiarism is incorporating someone else’s content in your work, deliberately or unintentionally. In simple words, it’s an act of stealing ideas, concepts, and thoughts of others and presenting them as your own.

Be clear about the fact that plagiarism can occur both intentionally and accidentally. Moreover, it can be found in different formats in your text, such as patchwork, paraphrased text, and verbatim.

Copyright

According to the BBC, copyright is a type of intellectual property right that provides the authority to the original creator to control the use of their work, ideas, or literary contributions. Putting it simply, it’s a legal regulation that protects the integrity of your work.

It helps you defend your intellectual rights and stop others from making unauthorized use of your property. 

How Do Plagiarism And Copyright Interlink? 

By now, it should be clear to you that everything you write falls under the category of intellectual property. The ideas, words, concepts, sentences, quotes, and any specific phrasing that comes to your mind, and you present them physically in the written form, become your asset.

This means that you become the owner, and everyone who uses your content without attribution violates the law of copyright. The same is the case when you infringe on someone else’s rights. For example, if you deliberately or accidentally utilize the work of a repeated author, you actually fall victim to copyright violation. 

Potential Outcomes Of Copyright Violation In The Form Of Plagiarism

Now, you should have understood that plagiarism is a form of copyright infringement. However, one question may come to your mind: What’s the consequence of violating intellectual property rights in the form of plagiarism? So, let’s have a look at some of its possible outcomes.

Academic Penalties 

Committing plagiarism may lead you to score lower grades, face permanent rustication, and lose credibility in front of teachers. All of these consequences can significantly impact your educational career and bring unbearable problems for you. 

Search Engine Penalties

If the search engines catch you using someone else’s work without attribution, they can penalize your site on different levels. You may lose your hard-earned ranking and also face a permanent ban on your domain in case of severe violation.

Legal Sanctions

The owner of an intellectual property has the right to file a lawsuit against the offenders. So, if you plagiarize your work deliberately or accidentally, you may have to be involved in a legal battle, which will cost you both time and money. 

How To Comply With Copyright And Avoid Plagiarism?

Now that you have understood what you may have to bear for violating intellectual property rights, you may be wondering how to stay compliant. Here are some practices that enable you to comply with copyright rules:

Always Cite All Sources 

Whenever you incorporate external information, never forget to cite sources. When you attribute all the authors, it’s considered a fair use of information. As a result, you don’t break the copyright rules, which saves you from facing any unwanted problems.

An important thing to remember in this regard is to always follow the citation guidelines, especially in academics. Using the wrong format may still be perceived as plagiarism. So, be careful and attentive about it.

Check Plagiarism Before Submission

Never submit your work, even if you are fully sure that you have cited every external source. Wondering why? Well, your written material may still have hidden traces of plagiarism that you may have committed unintentionally.

So, always check for plagiarism and don’t forget to get help from an efficient plagiarism checker. With this reliable tool, you can ensure that your work passes a strong plagiarism test. This practice will reveal the unseen plagiarized parts that you were unfamiliar with.

Paraphrase Effectively With Attribution

Paraphrasing is a highly essential skill that every student, writer, novelist, copywriter, or content creator should learn. With expertise in this art, one can easily present an existing idea in a unique way while staying compliant with copyright laws.

This rewriting technique allows you to incorporate the ideas of others in your work in an ethical manner. So, if an idea really inspires you and you wish to use it, first understand it and then present it in your own way. Remember, don’t forget to credit the original creator of the idea. 

To Sum Up

After reading this guide, we hope that you have understood how plagiarism and copyright are associated with each other. Also, it should be clear now that being a writer, student, content creator, or legal professional, you must comply with copyright laws.

In this regard, our suggestions on how to stay compliant will surely help you.