Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a really ugly word and a widespread problem on the web. Ripping off words, whether it's from a blog, a book, an article, or a website and claiming them as your own and/or reprinting them without permission is STEALING!

Pam posted about plagiarism at Antique or Not about her experience with her words being ripped off, with a link to one of her favorite blogs. I clicked on the link to Chickens in the Road and discovered that Suzanne has had her words ripped off and used in other blogs, with the perpetrator claiming them as her own.

Both Pam and Suzanne, and many of the people who left comments, offered some really great links about how to protect your words. Copyscape is a site where you can type in your blog or website url and see who's stealing your stuff. The top ten results are free. They offer a subscription service for $4.95 a month which searches the web and notifies you immediately when your words are stolen. They also offer single searches for $.05 for offline content that is reproduced on the web without permission. This is so much easier and more efficient than doing a Google search for sentences or phrases you've written to see where else they appear on the web.

I've had some blog posts and website content ripped off, even with a copyright notice posted on all my blogs and websites, and the words All Rights Reserved. I've also had entire books ripped off. I knew when I started blogging that my words might be used elsewhere on the web; to make it easy for people who wanted to copy my words to be upstanding and honest, I posted a copyright notice on the sidebar, giving permission to use my blog content on the web provided that I was given credit and a link back to my blog.

Your words, once you've written them, are yours and yours alone. They belong to you. No one can use them without your permission. That's copyright law. Enforcing it is another matter entirely. Here's an article about copyright laws relating to Internet use. What can you do when someone has stolen your words? First, let them know that they are a thief. Leave a comment on their blog. Flag their blog, then file a claim with their blog host. When people want to use your words, it's the law that they have to have written permission to do so. Without permission, they are infringing your copyright. They are stealing your words, words that you've written from your heart and soul.

If any plagiarists are reading this, I give you permission to copy and put this post on your blog. But this post is probably something you won't want to steal. It would show you up for what you really are: a low-life and bottom-dweller who isn't intelligent enough to write your own words. And for all you honest writers out there, please blog about this problem and take action when someone steals your words.