Introduction
The theft of intellectual property is not just a modern phenomenon. However, the digital age had given the problem of plagiarism a new dimension.
In a matter of seconds, you can find information on any subject on the internet. Such information makes it tempting for writers to just copy and paste text from sources they find on search engines such as Google or Yahoo. Particularly websites like Wikipedia include a great deal of information that is easily attainable to anyone.
Plagiarizing does not necessarily result from intention, but often from ignorance. For this reason, it is particularly important to point out correct citation methods and to explain the consequences of plagiarism.
Plagiarism (lat. plagium 'kidnapping') is the illicit appropriation of another person’s intellectual property.1
In other words, plagiarism is the stealing of ideas. 2 That means you can’t just borrow text without giving sources!
When individual words, passages of text or structures are borrowed in writing, the exact source and the original author must be correctly cited.
„By plagiarism we mean the appropriation, in whole or in part, of somebody else’s work without citing the original source and author. Plagiarism is essentially a violation of copyright. Brief passages of somebody else’s work may be cited, so long as the citation is properly labeled and the source is indicated.“3
In general, it is not forbidden to refer to somebody else’s ideas; however, you have to abide by certain rules of fair play (see: Preventing plagiarism).
Sources:
1 http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plagiarismus, accessed on 01.02.2012
2 http://www.plagscan.com/, accessed on 01.02.2012
3 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
In order to avoid plagiarism, you should be familiar with certain rules of proper academic writing and know how to apply them. Your instructor is the one who is primarily responsible for familiarizing you with them, but the essentials are briefly explained below.1
Academic Writing
Generally speaking, every academic paper is based on intellectual foundations laid by others. If you are writing about a topic, you need to be familiar with the current research in that field and be able to explain it in writing using your own words. Taking the knowledge you’ve acquired, you will compose your own work, formulate your own theses, etc. While doing this, however, you are required to cite all the sources you’ve consulted and marked all the excerpts you’ve used as citations.
Citing Correctly
A fundamental prerequisite for avoiding plagiarism is correct citation. All passages containing other people’s ideas must be marked with source citations. You can find a detailed description of the citation process under Citation Techniques.
If you wish to ensure that all sources have been correctly cited, you can use an automated program for plagiarism detection. With the help of professional analytic tools, sources and citations you’ve overlooked will be highlighted directly within the text, allowing you to fix mistakes right away and avoid plagiarism from the start.
Note: Even the mere suspicion of plagiarism can land you in hot water, so be sure to hand in a well-documented paper to start with!
Upholding Academic Standards
"Several times during the course of your studies, you will be required to write an academic paper. The higher your level of study, the greater the complexity of the work as well as the academic rigor expected."2
Before beginning to research your paper, you should know what sort of paper it needs to be, and what the requirements for it are. Various types of academic writing exist depending on your level of education:
The introduction to academic writing begins early on in the educational process with, for example, the writing of a theme paper. Later, at the university level, you hone your skills by composing term papers and completing research projects. Toward the end of your studies, there is the bachelor’s or master’s thesis. Higher forms of academic writing, such as doctoral and postdoctoral dissertations, are extremely demanding. 3
Note: The more difficult and demanding the academic paper, the stricter the requirements and the graver the consequences for plagiarism or suspicion of same.
Protocol
First of all, you have to find a topic and define the problem. Then comes the quest for source material and the evaluation of those sources, which need to be checked for reliability and accuracy. Next, you should write an outline of the paper, and only after that should you begin writing the first draft. When you are finished, it’s time to proofread the paper and double-check your source citations for accuracy 4 (see Citation Techniques)
Note: Many educational institutions use automated plagiarism detection programs, so be sure and double-check the accuracy of your sources and citations before handing in the paper!
Your Right to Instruction
If you have not been taught—or sufficiently taught—how to write an academic paper correctly, you have the right to demand that such instruction be made available to you.
Raise the subject with your instructor. Let him/her know where you need help. Teachers and professors are generally very willing to offer additional assistance.
If for some reason they still fail do so, you have on top of that the right to take your complaint to the next higher level of authority.
Sources:
1 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
2 http://www.plagscan.com, accessed on 01.02.2012
3 http://www.studium-und-pc.de/wissenschaftliches-arbeiten.htm, accessed on 01.02.2012
4 http://www.studium-und-pc.de/wissenschaftliches-arbeiten.htm, accessed on 01.02.2012
Note: There is no one, correct citation standard that is used universally; instead, each academic discipline has developed its own notions of proper citation and how it should look. Ideally, you should acquaint yourself with the system of citation most widely used in your own field.
Correctly performing citation is sometimes a difficult task, since you are constantly trying to determine when a citation is necessary. All statements, numerical data, information, etc., which can be ascribed to a specific individual (statistics, etc.) must be cited. On the other hand, stating today’s date would not need a citation, since it’s a generally accepted fact.1
Avoid Plagiarism
Every citation must be able to be verified by a reader/grader. Therefore, you should clearly mark all ideas or content borrowed—whether directly or indirectly — from another source. Failure to do so would constitute plagiarism, the consequences of which could haunt you for years and have a negative impact on your professional career.
Tip: When in doubt as to whether a certain piece of information should be furnished with a source citation, it is better to err on the side of too much direct/indirect citation than too little.
Indirect Quotations
Indirect quotation is the analogous rendering of someone else’s content using your own words. It also includes the modification or rearrangement of the original wording used in the source. In either case, when ideas are borrowed from somebody else, they must be labeled as such. The use of indirect quotations, moreover, also demonstrates that you have grappled with the text and understand how to integrate it into your own line of argument.
cf.
The citations for indirect quotations always begin with the abbreviation cf. (confer [Latin] = compare), since they are ‘merely’ instances of analogously reproducing somebody else’s content, for example: (cf. Steinke 1996, p. 73).
Direct Quotations
If a word or statement is copied verbatim—meaning exactly how it was in the original source—then it is considered a direct quotation and is set off with quotation marks (“”). Direct quotations are used only when the exact wording or term is especially important. As a rule, you should be rather sparing in your use of direct quotations. They must be completely and faithfully reproduced, even when there are errors in the original, or it’s in a foreign language or it doesn’t cohere grammatically with your own text. Errors in the original text are labeled with [sic].
If the quotation contains another quotation from a third party, then the latter must be surrounded with single quotation marks (‘’).
Longer Direct Quotations
Longer direct quotations are usually set off typographically. Font size is reduced, lines are single-spaced, and the passage is indented a bit more on both the left and the right. Example:
„Wikipedia citation restriction: In academic writing, Wikipedia articles should not be cited, as there is no guarantee for their content. In the event that a Wikipedia citation is unavoidable, one is best advised—especially at the university level—to consult with, e.g., the relevant instructor before the completion of the paper.“ (Source: http://de.wikipedia.org, letzter Abruf October 2009)2
New and Old Spelling Conventions in Quotations
When citing sources verbatim, the original spelling should remain unchanged, even if it differs from contemporary spelling. No adjustment is to be made to a direct quotation for reasons of spelling. If the source was written in an earlier era when now outmoded spelling conventions were in use, the archaic spellings are not to be labeled in any way. The [sic] notation can only be used for words that were misspelled according to the conventions of that era. This means that today’s academic paper authors will have to be familiar with both contemporary and historic spellings in order to know what was considered correct in each era.
Omissions
The omission of a word is noted with parentheses and two period marks. Omissions of more than two words are noted with parentheses and three period marks. If a part of the original text is moved around within a quotation, the part so moved is placed within parentheses. If the citing author adds something to the quotation, [square brackets] are placed around the added text.
An omission can never be allowed to distort or reverse the meaning of the original text.
Examples of (1) verbatim quotation, (2) quotation with omission and (3) addition:
- „The ever-increasing pressure on benefits recipients to accept any job on offer, no matter how unreasonable the conditions, is completely superfluous from the point of view of labor market policy” (Steinke, 1996, p. 73).
- 2. What is occurring in this case is a constant intensification, where “(t)he ever-increasing pressure on benefits recipients to accept any job on offer, no matter how unreasonable the conditions, is completely superfluous from the point of view of labor market policy” (Steinke, 1996, p. 73).
- 3. “The ever-increasing pressure on benefits recipients to accept any job on offer, no matter how unreasonable the conditions, is completely superfluous from the point of view of labor market [and socio-political] policy” (Steinke, 1996, p. 73).
Labeling Citations
Both direct as well as indirect citations must be labeled. This is done either with footnotes, or with citation tags in the main body of the text itself. While the use of tags within the text can interrupt the reader’s flow, footnotes will also divert his/her gaze from the text if the reader is interested in what the footnotes have to say.
Caution: Every grader has his/her own thoughts on this subject, so be sure and discuss the issue before each assignment with the grader. In any case, the labeling system should always be consistent throughout the entire work.
With direct quotations, the footnote is placed after the closing parenthesis mark at the end of the quotation; with indirect quotations, it is placed at the end of either the sentence or the passage—wherever the conceptual reference ends. Numbers are handled just like direct quotations, only without double quotation marks. (The footnote follows right after the number.)
Footnote numbers either continuously increment for the duration of the paper, or else they start over every page, section or chapter. (Don’t panic: Word can do it for you automatically.) Be sure and discuss this with your grader! The text of the footnote contains the information for the source of the citation. Here there are two possibilities: short-form documentation and full documentation.
Short-Form Documentation
Short-Form Documentation in the Footnote
Short-form documentation in the footnote merely contains the following information: author (surname), year of publication and page number. Example: Steinke, 1996, p. 73.
Short-form documentation is preferred for longer papers, since particular authors may be cited more often, and a longer form of documentation would start to seem repetitive. The full documentation for each source is still given in the im bibliography.3
Short-Form Documentation in the Text
Another variation is the short-form documentation in the main body of the text, the ‘Harvard Style’ of source citation. This citation style requires the insertion of a citation tag into the text right after the citation and enclosed in (parentheses).
Tip: More information on „Harvard“-Style Harvard referencing guide (PDF, English, last accessed October 2009).4
Full Documentation
The full documentation method places all the source information in the footnotes, sparing the reader the need to look at a bibliography. For reasons of space and time, though, this method is not advisable.
loc. cit.
When writing a shorter paper, it may make sense to forgo a bibliography.5 In that case, in order not to have to repeat all the source information over and over, you can use the abbreviation loc. cit. (loco citato [Latin] = in the place cited). Beginning the second time a given source is cited and every time thereafter, you would use this abbreviation in parentheses instead of a full source citation.
cf.
The labeling of indirect citations when using full documentation always begins with the abbreviation cf. (confer [Latin] = compare), since we are dealing ‘merely’with the analogous reproduction of somebody else’s content.
ibid.
If two (or more) citations from the exact same source are found immediately after one another in the footnote section, you should use the abbreviation ibid. (ibidem [Latin] = in the same place). Each footnote so labeled must refer to the exact same work from the exact same author; only the page numbers, which are indicated after the ibid., may differ.
Documentation Examples
Examples of (1) short-form documentation, (2) full documentation in the footnote and (3) short-form documentation using ibid.:
______________________
1 Steinke 1996, S. 73
2 Rifkin, J.: The End of Work and Its Future. Frankfurt/Main 1996, S. 112
3 Rifkin, J.: a. a. O., S. 113
4 vgl. Steinke 1996, S. 70ff
5 vgl. BT-Drucksache 13/4941, S. 30
6 vgl. ebd., S. 31
Be aware that, in footnotes, you can also find additional information that would be considered too detailed or distracting for the main body of text.
Citing a Preface
Should you need to cite a preface written by someone other than the main author of the book, you can always use the following method. Let’s assume that Drewer has written the preface to Meier’s book:
„…“ (Drewer, Preface to Meier 1999, p. xi)
In the bibliography, you would list the book under ‘M’ for Meier.
Citing Internet Sources
Sources from the internet should only be used with the greatest of care in academic papers. On account of the fast-paced nature of the internet, it can be difficult to verify a citation at a later date.
How to list internet sources in a bibliography is explained on the Bibliography page.
Sources:
1 The content of the article has been made available to the Plagiathek in courtesy of: Matthes, Holger: Literaturverzeichnis bzw. Quellenverzeichnis In: www.diplom-reader.de. Stand: 20.01.2012. URL:http://www.holgermatthes.de/diplom-reader/diplomarbeit/zitiertechniken.php (last accessed on 03.02.2012)
2 http://de.wikipedia.org, last accessed on October 2009
3 Matthes, Holger: Literaturverzeichnis bzw. Quellenverzeichnis. In: www.diplom-reader.de. Stand: 20.01.2012. URL:http://www.holgermatthes.de/diplom-reader/diplomarbeit/literaturverzeichnis.php (last accessed on 03.02.2012)
4 Harvard referencing guide (PDF, English, last accessed on October 2009)
5 Matthes, Holger: Literaturverzeichnis bzw. Quellenverzeichnis. In: www.diplom-reader.de. Stand: 20.01.2012. URL:http://www.holgermatthes.de/diplom-reader/diplomarbeit/literaturverzeichnis.php (last accessed on 03.02.2012)
6 Matthes, Holger: Literaturverzeichnis bzw. Quellenverzeichnis. In: www.diplom-reader.de. Stand: 20.01.2012. URL:http://www.holgermatthes.de/diplom-reader/diplomarbeit/literaturverzeichnis.php (last accessed on 03.02.2012)
When a plagiarist is caught, there are consequences. Plagiarism is no trivial offense; it is a violation of copyright law which must be seriously penalized. You should always bear that in mind.1
Consequences at the K-12 Level
At the K-12 educational level, consequences can range from a grade point deduction on the assignment to an outright failing grade. Penalty assignments can additionally be imposed. In severe cases or for repeat offenses, the plagiarist can even be threatened with expulsion from school.2
Consequences at the University Level
At the university level, consequences can range from a disciplinary warning, to an automatic course failure, to an expungement from the student registry or even the full revocation of an academic degree or title.3
Note: Committing plagiarism has extensive repercussions and can irreparably damage one’s reputation. Moreover, it can have the effect of rendering certain career paths — in politics, academia, or the public sector — permanently off limits.
Legal Consequences
The following excerpts from the law of copyright make clear the legal consequences that you can face, in addition to any other penalties imposed by your school or university:
§ 106 Impermissible Use of Copyright-protected Works
(1) Whoever copies, distributes or publicly displays a work, or a revision or modification of a work, without the permission of the rightful owner and in a manner other than prescribed by law, is to be incarcerated for a period not to exceed three years or penalized with a fine.
(2) Attempted plagiarism is also punishable.4
§ 109 Demand for Legal Redress
In cases under Sections 106 to 108 and 108b, the crime will only be prosecuted in response to a demand for legal redress, except where the prosecuting authority believes it to be in the public interest to intervene officially.5
Sources:
1 https://komm-in.uni-hohenheim.de/fileadmin/einrichtungen/agrar/Studium/Plagiate/strategien_plagiate.pdf,accessed on 03.02.2012
2 http://www.das-rechtsportal.de/recht/schulrecht/plagiate.htm, accessed on 03.02.2012
3 https://komm-in.uni-hohenheim.de/fileadmin/einrichtungen/agrar/Studium/Plagiate/strategien_plagiate.pdf, accessed on 03.02.2012
4 http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/urhg/__106.html, accessed on 03.02.2012
5 http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/urhg/__109.html, accessed on 03.02.2012
Guidelines for Instructors
Plagiarism (lat. plagium 'kidnapping’') is the illicit appropriation of another person’s intellectual property.1
In academic and educational contexts, we use the word plagiarism to describe the borrowing of individual words, passages of text or structures without citing the original source and author.
Academic Misconduct
There is a very thin line separating academic misconduct from plagiarism. It is often not possible to distinguish clearly between the two.
In practice, most cases of academic misconduct result from negligence, such as the insufficient verification of sources, or an incorrect method of source citation. However, certain intentional actions can also be reprimanded as academic misconduct.
"Academic misconduct is present whenever false information of a materially significant nature is given, knowingly or not, in a scholastic context or in an academic paper, or when the intellectual property rights of another party are violated, or their research activities are deliberately impaired in some other way."2
When do we Speak of Plagiarism?
"By plagiarism we mean the appropriation, in whole or in part, of somebody else’s work without citing the original source and author. Plagiarism is essentially a violation of copyright. Brief passages of somebody else’s work may be cited, so long as the citation is properly labeled and the source is indicated."3
In suspicious or borderline cases, a thorough examination of the work suspected of plagiarism is essential. You can obtain more information on what to do in such cases and on how plagiarism within a text can be proven under Suspecting or Finding Plagiarism.
Sources:
1 http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plagiarismus, accessed on 30.01.2012
2 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
3 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
As an instructor, you can help prevent plagiarism before any document is ever written.
This requires a good working relationship with your students, so that you can influence them to adopt the proper academic writing techniques. The main goal is prevention:
"University instructors are also responsible for the academic writing of their students. They should, therefore, begin instructing the students early in the fundamentals of scholarly writing and set an example for them. They should ensure that those under their supervision properly learn the rules governing academic writing. Students and research assistants must be trained to recognize cases of academic misconduct."1
Sensitizing and Explaining
The following is an overview of didactic measures for avoiding plagiarism:
- Raising the subject: for example, by discussing plagiarism in lectures, establishing a code of conduct, having instructors set the example.
- Introductory lectures on project and time management: discussing sensible time-management strategies and efficient planning of academic papers.
- A good introduction to academic writing: training students in the fundamentals of scholarly writing and proper citation techniques.2
Changing the Scope of Assignments
- Changing the choice of topic: avoiding subjects that are too general; narrowing down the scope of the subject.
- Adapting the subject: For example, through current or regional references.
- Clarifying the originality of the work: how demanding are the academic standards?3
Additional Requirements
In order to establish the authenticity of the work, some additional requirements are in order. These additional features should be provided along with the work itself.4
- Giving thesis sheets and reference lists
- Oral presentations and thesis defense
- Portfolio on the writing process
- Adding a bibliography
- Requiring at least 2 or 3 current internet sources or books: This is especially recommended for high school students. The inclusion of required sources helps to ease them into the process of academic writing.
Online Plagiarism Software
- Adopting a software-based system for plagiarism detection and analysis: Let your students know that their institution uses professional tools for detecting plagiarism. Doing this will dissuade many students from engaging in plagiarism from the start.5
Establishing an Honor Code
An honor code establishes standards of conduct for instructors and students alike. By signing the code, both groups pledge to uphold the rules and duties laid down by it. A code of honor creates an academic justification for preventing plagiaristic fraud.
This method is widely used at American universities and has proven very successful.
An honor code generally consists of two components. First of all, it defines the rules of good academic practice as well as the conditions that constitute academic misconduct; secondly, it lays out the procedure for dealing with academic misconduct.
BFU Berlin provides us with a good, practical example of how to implement an honor code.6
Sources:
1 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
2 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
3 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
4 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
5 http://www.plagscan.com, accessed on 14.02.2012
6 http://www.fu-berlin.de/forschung/service/Ehrenkodex-ab292002.pdf, accessed on 14.02.2012
Not every student is a potential plagiarist. In order to detect plagiarism, you need solid clues.
Indicators of Plagiarism
In an effort to avert suspicion of plagiarism, many students try to disguise their copying. Passages of text are rearranged or mixed together from various sources.1
A trained eye, however, can tell just by reading whether a document is internally consistent. The following signs may indicate an instance of plagiarism:2
Unusually Good Writing Style
Naturally there are some documents written by students which are very good in style.
However, when a text is extraordinarily well written and the diction is too perfect, you should begin to entertain doubts. These could be signs of plagiarism, especially in the case of inexperienced writers or those just beginning their studies.
Change of Style
A sudden change of style within a document could indicate that “cribbing” occurred while it was being written.
Whenever
- the text suddenly becomes flawless after a significantly large section with spelling errors
- the subjunctive is frequently used
- or the formatting suddenly changes in the middle of a running text (different headings, line spacing, margins or fonts),
you should conduct a manual plagiarism check.
Unusual Words
If you notice exceptionally strange words or unusual expressions in a document that are not part of a student’s vocabulary, this could be an indicator of plagiarism.
Spelling errors
Unusual misspellings can be a sign of plagiarism. Mistakes are sometimes copied word for word from a source since the plagiarist believes that they are actually examples of technical jargon.
Likewise, proper nouns written several different ways in the same document may also indicate that the text was copied from several different sources. A plagiarism check would also be advisable in this situation.
Methods of Checking for Plagiarism
If suspicions begin to mount, there are various methods for establishing whether plagiarism has taken place.3
Online Search Engines
At first you should randomly check some of the passages in question, using a search engine such as Google or Yahoo. z. B. Google oder Yahoo.4
Simply type whichever sentences grab your eye into the search box. For optimal search results, these sentences should be at least six words in length.
Note: Do not forget to document the websites where you have located the sources of plagiarism so that you can find them again if necessary. As websites are constantly changing, you are best advised to print out the relevant documents with date and source.
Online Plagiarism Software
An efficient alternative to time-intensive searches and manual evaluation would be an online program for automated plagiarism checking.5
Such an online service allows you to simply upload suspicious documents for immediate analysis. The results are listed along with all sources located.
Additionally, you can have all matches shown directly within the text and compared with one another. The number of matches is displayed as a percentage.
Library Search
Even with the internet’s numerous possibilities, conducting research at the library is still advisable in many cases. Although this method of research is a bit more time-consuming, it is well worth the effort when plagiarism is suspected.
Tip: Many libraries now have access to an online catalog where you can retrieve books in digital form.
Handling Cases of Plagiarism
Once you have established that plagiarism has taken place, you should act without delay and respond appropriately.
One-on-one conversation
The first thing you should do is speak confidentially with the student, asking them why they plagiarized.6
In the first case, you will often thereby obtain helpful information for preventing similar cases of plagiarism from occurring in the future. Secondly, by discussing it, the incident can be made into a learning experience for the student.
Sanctions
Inform yourself about the guidelines concerning plagiarism and the consequences for it prescribed by your educational institution.
At the university level, it is necessary to inform the university’s attorney. Moreover, you should find out whether there exists a committee responsible for handling cases of plagiarism and inform them right away.
Some educational institutions have an honor code which explicitly defines penalties for plagiarism.
Sources:
1 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
2 https://komm-in.uni-hohenheim.de/fileadmin/einrichtungen/agrar/Studium/Plagiate/strategien_plagiate.pdf, accessed on 08.02.2012
3 https://komm-in.uni-hohenheim.de/fileadmin/einrichtungen/agrar/Studium/Plagiate/strategien_plagiate.pdf, accessed on 08.02.2012
4 http://www.google.de, http://de.yahoo.com, accessed on 09.02.2012
5 http://www.plagscan.com, accessed on 09.02.2012
6 https://komm-in.uni-hohenheim.de/fileadmin/einrichtungen/agrar/Studium/Plagiate/strategien_plagiate.pdf, accessed on 08.02.2012
7 https://www.weiterbildung.uzh.ch/dam/jcr:ffffffff-9a08-8cca-ffff-fffffe74617c/A_Z_Plagiaten_vorbeugen.pdf, accessed on 03.10.2018
When a plagiarist is caught, there are consequences. Plagiarism is no trivial offense; it is a violation of copyright law which must be seriously penalized. You should always bear that in mind.1
Consequences at the K-12 Level
At the K-12 educational level, consequences can range from a grade point deduction on the assignment to an outright failing grade. Penalty assignments can additionally be imposed. In severe cases or for repeat offenses, the plagiarist can even be threatened with expulsion from school.2
Consequences at the University Level
At the university level, consequences can range from a disciplinary warning, to an automatic course failure, to an expungement from the student registry or even the full revocation of an academic degree or title.3
Note: Committing plagiarism has extensive repercussions and can irreparably damage one’s reputation. Moreover, it can have the effect of rendering certain career paths — in politics, academia, or the public sector — permanently off limits.
Legal Consequences
The following excerpts from the law of copyright make clear the legal consequences that you can face, in addition to any other penalties imposed by your school or university:
§ 106 Impermissible Use of Copyright-protected Works
(1) Whoever copies, distributes or publicly displays a work, or a revision or modification of a work, without the permission of the rightful owner and in a manner other than prescribed by law, is to be incarcerated for a period not to exceed three years or penalized with a fine.
(2) Attempted plagiarism is also punishable.4
§ 109 Demand for Legal Redress
In cases under Sections 106 to 108 and 108b, the crime will only be prosecuted in response to a demand for legal redress, except where the prosecuting authority believes it to be in the public interest to intervene officially.5