Protect Yourself From Plagiarism, Re-authoring, and Use of Your Work Without Citation
The threat of plagiarism has never been higher than it is today. The threat of research, fiction, nonfiction, or any type of written information being copied, pasted, and assigned a false author has never been easier. The copy/paste routine is a much simpler option for a lot of unscrupulous folks out there who don’t have the know how or are just plain lazy to create the same content. Though I am not certain I'd label Copyscape a watchdog group quite yet, they do offer the ability to find out where writing has been stolen. The recourse against the theft of your content may be up to you.
Note: I like to pass on great Internet resources to my readers. Every single one of them, up to this point has been free, if I am remembering correctly. This is a sort of hybrid: the service is a paid one, but it also offers a free download that is darn near as useful as the service itself.
I’m not an affiliate of this or any of the websites, communities, or services I scour the internet for, to bring the best to my readers. I just like finding cool stuff and sharing it! Social Tsunami is my business so I’ll be talking more about that as the days go on, but that is, I hope, obviously different. So be assured I am not a sell out. Yet, anyway. . . .
Now on to the good stuff: protecting your writing and content online, and searching for instances where it has already been reproduced in a non-cited, unauthorized, or just plain plagiarized, re-authored manner.
Copyscape is a Web service dedicated to protecting your content. Simply copy and paste the URL of your article, homepage, squeeze page, whatever you are concerned about, into the search engine. It will scour the web for instances where your words have been duplicated. If your name is not cited, and you did not sign a contract allowing someone to reproduce your material in the manner it has been, there is a problem. There is also a free search available if you would like to take the service for a test spin.
This is a great way to make sure all of your hard work isn’t making someone else Adsense revenue or helping them present themselves as an expert on subjects that they clearly aren’t. Likewise, your stories belong to you, and shouldn't be out winning other people contest money or book deals. It should be clear enough, but I seriously discourage anyone from tossing a completed manuscript for a book all over the web for a variety of reasons, even if it is copyrighted. This can get messy with critiquing groups, editors, and people you think you can trust. However, this is a complex topic better covered in another post.
The paid service (starting at $4.99/mo.) not only increases the search capabilities, but also has the option of periodic scans of content you put into Copyscape’s database of your work. They will notify you and tell you who the culprit is automatically, even if you don't think to make a search. This can save a tremendous amount of time. If you find someone duplicating or using your work unscrupulously, you are protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
This is a great service people in a variety of professions: content developers, webmasters, freelance writers, novelists, and even teachers who grade essays should check up on it. One more tool in the tech-toolbox, but that’s not the best part for us bargain shoppers.
Free Tool Alert: Copyscape offers a variety of banners you can put pin on your work to deter others from plagiarizing it. The few seconds it will take to input an image at the bottom of your blog posts, paste in the footer of webpages, or append to a full length article you submit to an editor for publishing (usually before you are actually paid), can save you a lot of heartache and potentially a lot of money and time pursuing plagiarism later on.
So take some precautions, especially when they are free. Start using the Copyscape Banners whether you have the service or not. It will make you look savvy, and the rest of the world think twice about ripping you off.
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