What Is Plagiarism? - Definition, Types, Tips, and Consequences

Introduction

Plagiarism is a hot topic. In recent years, it has been widely reported that many people are not just stealing others' writings without giving credit but also posting them as if they were their own work with no changes whatsoever.

What Is the Meaning of Plagiarism?

Content plagiarism is the act of taking someone's work and copying it without crediting the sources. When someone posts content without giving credit to the original creator, they steal that person's work.

Plagiarism applies to using a previously published idea, expression, word, image, or process as one's original creation. It can also be considered to be theft and or copyright infringement.

Why Is Plagiarism Bad?

Plagiarism is bad because it devalues the work of others. It's like taking someone else’s words, ideas and content without giving credit for their effort. It also violates the copyright laws in some countries, which can lead to legal action and fines.

Plagiarized content is also bad for SEO because when a site does not have original content, it makes the page less valuable to search engines and visitors. It can also hurt the reputation of your website and the trustworthiness of the site as a whole.

What Are Forms of Plagiarism?

Complete Plagiarism

Complete plagiarism happens when a writer completely "steals" the work and introduces it as their own. For example, you may copy-paste the whole e-book of another company and use the original content without changing a single detail for your content marketing strategy.

Direct Word for Word Plagiarism

Direct plagiarism is copying another person's work without giving them credit and replacing some words with the source. It is the easiest type of plagiarism to identify because it often doesn't change the meaning of the copied text.

Direct refers to the act of stealing someone's work word by word and pasting it into your content piece. Direct plagiarizing does not steal the whole work as it was with complete plagiarism but takes specific paragraphs without quoting or giving credit to resources.

Also, two or three words might be changed. But it is too obvious and still considered plagiarism.

Source-Based Plagiarism

Self-plagiarism occurs when writers:

• Cite sources but deliver their idea in a false way
• Reference some sources but ignore others
• Credit false, imaginary source

Plagiarism of Your Work

There are cases of self-plagiarism. Yes, you can use your ideas, words, and sentences however you use them. But this type of plagiarism has drawbacks.

Indeed, you are not stealing anything if you repurpose the content on multiple pages. Still, if Google detects a case of duplicate content, you may get penalized.

So, even if you have discussed the topic 100x times, you should go the extra mile and try to use different variations of words and sentences to avoid the duplicate content penalty.

Paraphrasing Plagiarism

Let's say you take the original concept of an idea derived from research and paraphrase it without referring to the primary source you plagiarize.

Accidental Plagiarism

Accidental plagiarism can happen when you neglect to cite your sources or misquote your sources. This type of plagiarism is often the result of carelessness or ignorance rather than intentional cheating. If you accidentally use someone else's words without giving them credit, you still plagiarise. Lack of intent does not absolve persons from responsibility for plagiarism.

Mosaic or Patchwork Plagiarism

Mosaic plagiarism is a type of plagiarism where the writers borrow from a source without using quotation marks or use synonyms for the author's language while keeping to the same general structure and meaning of the original. Patchwork plagiarism can be subtle and difficult to catch, to trick the reader into thinking it’s new content.

What Are the SEO Consequences of Plagiarism?

There are several potential consequences for plagiarism when it comes to SEO. First and foremost, plagiarizing content can get you penalized by Google. This means that your website will rank lower in search engine results pages (SERPs), making it much harder for people to find you. In addition, plagiarism can also cause your site to be removed from Google's index altogether, meaning that it will no longer appear in search results.

Aside from the potential penalties from Google, plagiarizing content can also lead to legal trouble. If you're caught copying someone else's work without giving them credit, you may be subject to fines or even imprisonment. And if you steal someone else's copyrighted material and use it on your website, you could face lawsuits from the copyright holder.

Finally, plagiarism is just bad for business overall. It makes you look like a dishonest or lazy person, and it can turn away potential customers and clients. So, not only will plagiarism hurt your SEO efforts, but it can also hurt your bottom line.

How to Avoid Plagiarised Content?

1. Collect Your Sources and References Together

As we have already mentioned, there are cases when writers or students forget to refer to sources, and they unintentionally plagiarize.

It is easily avoidable if you create a list of references and link them to your outline parts. After you align sources with your H2-H3, mark what needs to be quoted, paraphrased, hyperlinked, or included in the footer.

Planning is a half-the-battle won! You should include the step of source collecting in your writing workflow.

2. Quote

The quote is a word used to describe the act of copying a piece of text verbatim and inserting it into your writing. This text should be enclosed in quotation marks and correctly attributed to the original author. Quote sparingly - only use quotes when necessary to drive home a point or illustrate a specific example.

When you include a quote in your writing, it is crucial to ensure that the content is original and accurately quoted. Use quotation marks in the content and cite the source. Also, if you are doing academic work, do not forget to include the author's name and date of publication in one sentence. For content, you can simply identify the source name.

There are multiple citation styles for citations, but the most common one is the APA style.

3. Paraphrase

A paraphrase is a way of rewriting someone else's texts in your own words while retaining the same meaning. So, use paraphrase when you want to avoid plagiarism, as simply copying large chunks of text from another source can get you into trouble. However, by reading attentively and rewriting the information in your own words, you will avoid plagiarism, better understand the material, and diversify your knowledge about the topic.

The best way to paraphrase is to take the crucial points of the source and rewrite them in your own words without changing their meaning. Indeed, it takes a bit of practice, but it's essential to do if you want to avoid plagiarism accusations.

But if you use the primary source of findings - research, academic paper, etc. mention the primary source of data or information.

4. Give Credit to Your Sources

When you write, it's vital to give credit where it's due. It is especially true when you are borrowing someone else's words or ideas.

• If you are unsure whether something needs a citation, it's always better to be safe than sorry! Add one anyway, and then your readers can decide for themselves if the information is worth further exploration.
• You should add a citation when an idea is similar to the source material but not identical. It shows that you've done your research and that you're respectful of other people's work.
• It can be easy to lose track of sources while writing. That's why it's important to include all the relevant information – author name, date of publication, and so on – in your citations.

5. Add Your Unique Perspective to Existing Content and Story

The internet is full of blogs - 4.4 million new articles are published daily across digital platforms. So, in this competitive environment, you should decorate the digital world with your unique knowledge and expertise.

That is what blogs are about!

6. Use Plagiarism Checker

Plagiarism checkers work by scanning your text, comparing it to a database of web pages and publications, and highlighting passages that appear similar to other texts. While there are distinctions between the plagiarism checker qualities, it is always a good idea to run your text through one before submitting the product. It will help you avoid any accidental instances of plagiarism.

What Tools Help You Avoid Plagiarism?

Plagiarismdetector.net

With Plagarismdetector, you can conduct as many plagiarism searches as you like. The software will skim through your texts and compare them to the database of million of webpages and provide an accurate result for pieces. 

Plagiarism detector delivers various text integration opportunities:

• Copy-paste
• URL integration
• The document upload

The software can scan texts written in 12 languages for free.

1. English
2. Italian
3. French
4. Arabic
5. Filipino
6. Portuguese
7. Hindi
8. German
9. Malaysian
10. Russian
11. Indonesian
12. Spanish

If you want to scan texts up to 25k words at the same time, buy the pro version.

Duplichecker.com

Available in 18 languages, Duplichecker is a valuable tool for plagiarism check. Whether you do the academic work or produce a blog, it is a go-to option that even spots unintentional plagiarism. 

You can use this plagiarism checker for free with 1000 words limit per search.

The tool offers multiple text integration options:

• Copy-paste
• URL integration
• The document upload

Here is the list of languages that can be applied to this plagiarism checker.

1. English
2. Spanish
3. Portuguese
4. Russian
5. German
6. Italian
7. Indonesian
8. Arabic
9. Turkish
10. Dutch
11. Vietnamese
12. French
13. Swedish
14. Korean
15. Japanese
16. Danish
17. Romanian
18. Norwegian

SmallSEOtools.com

Plagiarism checker from SmallSEOtools offers users the database of billion web pages. As you upload your content, the tool will run it against existing web content and, if plagiarized, will show the matching sources.

SmallSEOtools offers the function of

• Copy-paste
• URL integration
• The document upload

The usage of the software is free unless you want to scan more than 1000 words at the same time. 

The free plagiarism checker is available in 21 languages:

1. English
2. Japanese
3. Italian
4. Russian
5. French
6. German
7. Spanish
8. Portuguese
9. Chinese
10. Arabic
11. Indonesian
12. Turkish
13. Korean
14. Vietnamese
15. Dutch
16. Polish
17. Norwegian
18. Czech
19. Swedish
20. Romanian
21. Danish

Plagiarism F.A.Q

Conclusion

If you are unsure about how to properly cite a source or paraphrase other articles, it is always better to hand content creation to pros.

Do you need authentic and high-quality content on your website?