Laws of Plagiarism And Copyright Infringement – Avoid Plagiarism

The concept of plagiarism can be confusing for you if you don’t have prior knowledge about it. If you don’t know about the laws of plagiarism and copyright issues, then don’t worry; we have got you all covered. In this post, we have briefly explained the laws of plagiarism. We have also discussed some of the most helpful ways to avoid plagiarism, like a pro. 

Plagiarism exists everywhere in the world today. There isn’t any industry where you can find cases of plagiarism increasing every turning day. From a student to a music production house, everyone is facing trouble because of plagiarism. Now it is high time we let the cat out of the bag and tell you what this menace is and what it can do to you if you get accused of it.

Plagiarism – What is it?

Plagiarism is the wrongful copying of content that is created and published by another author. Copying ideas, facts, figures, writing material, images, and other content from another source results in plagiarism. Plagiarism can occur without you even knowing about it. So it would be best if you were extra vigilant to keep yourself away from copyright infringements. 

Plagiarism exists in dozens of different types today, which is why it has become very hard to stay away from it. Even if you are not copying content deliberately from another source, there is always a chance that your work can be accused of duplication. This is because multiple people working on the same topics can have similar work in the end. 

Ramifications of plagiarism offense

Plagiarism is still not considered a criminal offense. You won’t have to worry about a death sentence if you are accused of it. But still, you should know that it is an ethical offense. You can face penalties in a court of law, especially if you have stolen copyright-protected work. Copyright violation is a serious offense in the federal courts, and it can get really ugly and expensive. To avoid plagiarism, you need to know about the basic laws related to plagiarism. 

Laws of Plagiarism that you should know about!

Here we have stated some laws that can help you keep away from plagiarism and its consequences.

  1. Copyright law is the first one that you should know about. The owner of copyrights, who can also be the author of the content, can sue the plagiarist in open court for code violations. According to 17 USC, Subsection 102, 401 & 405, the publisher doesn’t have to register for copyrights manually; all published content is protected by copyrights and lies under the publisher’s ownership. This law helps you understand that there is no excuse for stealing content.
  2. The SOPA Law is the next most powerful one in the United States of America. According to this law, a person can no longer stream copyrighted material. If found guilty, one has to face five years behind the bar.
  3. PIPA law, also known as the Protect IP Act, defines the distribution of illegal copies of content under all circumstances. 
  4. Trademark and unfair competition laws protect scientists, research people, and professors who spend all their lives getting unique information and publishing it. This law ensures that proper credits are given to the authors through citations.

You can read about these laws in detail later on. Still, we would suggest you take all measures to avoid plagiarism and copyright infringement. If you don’t know how to protect yourself, you need to read the tips we listed in the next section.

How to avoid plagiarism?

If you want to avoid the problems created by plagiarism and copyright infringement, then we would suggest you:

  • Always use a plagiarism checker

The best way to ensure that your work is original and is not breaching any copyrights is by using a plagiarism checker. Plagiarism checker can check all kinds of content with billions of web pages in less than seconds. Today there are dozens of plagiarism checker free websites indexed on the internet to help you to check plagiarism and avoid all copyright-related issues. So before using any content commercially, make sure you go through it with a plagiarism tool or copyright checker.

  • Always cite the sources

Another way to avoid plagiarism is by still seeking help from an already published source by simply citing the original reference sources. You can learn about the sources with a plagiarism checker if you haven’t kept them in your bookmarks in the first place. The citation shows your honest intentions and sincerity towards your work.

  • Always quote words that are not yours

There is no harm in using the main idea and explaining it in your own words. Still, there is surely trouble when you are using words and complete sentences that are already published. You should avoid these kinds of scenarios, but if you can’t. It is important to use sentences and facts written by another writer. You should always add quotations on them and pay credits to the author in the end. 

These are some of the helpful tips which can help you avoid plagiarism and copyright infringement!

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