Many writers and students use a source or reference for a piece of writing they are working on and keep the main idea of the original, thinking they are safe. In fact, this is one of the most common forms of online plagiarism. Maintaining the form of the original source is against copyright law even if the exact wording itself has been altered.

Unfortunately, this violation is also difficult to catch without an expert plagiarism service and knowledge. It is usually left until it is too late resulting in academic violations or even jail time along with heavy fines. If you do choose to follow this type of format, protect yourself by giving credit to the original author.

Situations That Require Citation

Any time you use someone's writing as a direct source for your own work, you need to provide the original author with credit through citation. Paraphrasing the general idea of a work or taking direct quotes both require credit. Incorporating a unique concept, thought, or idea into your writing also qualifies as traditional and online plagiarism.

Using a commonly known fact is not considered a violation by a plagiarism service or expert. This is information that is understood by a majority even if it is only in a particular industry or field. Some examples of this could include the boiling point of an element or a favorite story such as 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf.'

How To Give Credit

While the exact way to cite a source depends on the style you are writing in, the requirements of the requestor, and the format of the source itself, all of these generally contain similar information. The author's name and title of the item used almost always come first. The publishing information is also required. This might include the publisher's name or the name of the website, the date the item became live or was published, and the exact location of the portions used in your work.

To prevent online plagiarism, you may also need to provide the DOI for the piece. The International DOI Foundation assigns and manages the Digital Object Identifier as a way of tracking and identifying electronic works. The sources might be used directly in your piece by stating 'According to...' if it is a small portion and found online provided it links back to the source. Credit can also be given through an endnote system or a formal bibliography.

Benefits Of Source Citing

Using a plagiarism service and the steps taken to prevent copyright violation may seem like a nuisance at first, but the benefits make it a worthwhile investment. The most obvious is preventing the pitfalls of the violation. Showing your research can add a significant amount of importance to your piece since it demonstrates the value of your work.

If the information you used was flawed, you will have the citation to back you up when defending the misinformation. Where citations come in particularly handy online is in the fact that your readers can follow back to the original source in order to find more information.

It is the writer's responsibility to prevent traditional and online plagiarism. Many professionals use a plagiarism service and experts to help them along the way. Being diligent in preventing it in your writing, however, is a vital step in this process.