Plz explain this problem... urgent help needed! (plagiarism)
Dear Folks,
i am relatively new in blogosphere(only 2 and half months) and am facing a somewhat strange problem. i found some of my posts posted in strange websites. The second post of mine is here.
Now see the same post of mine is posted in this strange website
http://usaeconomy.org/2009/01/02/challenges-before-india-in-2009/
and also here
http://brokencontrollers.com/challenges-before-india-in-2009-t875443.php#1184170
How???????? how is this happening???? plagiarism????
Note: i first started blogging in wordpress......then moved to blogger. This was originally posted in my previous wordpress account.
Plz suggest some plagiarism indicator free software??
Yep, this is plagiarism, but the automated type. This link (brokencontrollers) is an aggregator, simply using the Wordpress.com tag feed for politics. In fact the title links to your old blog, as the permalink is a part of the feed.
The other site (usa economy) looks even more spammy (as there are links to extenders of certain body parts) and appears to be doing the same thing.
This is a good topic and I'm sure other bloggers can pitch in with their thoughts. Aggregators such as the ones above not only steal your search engine ranking, but also pass off your content as their own and encourage people to comment there instead of the source. This was also discussed at the Google SearchCamp in Bangalore recently - Google said that they have ways of identifying the original page, but sometimes, even they get it wrong.
Check out the faqs on copyscape, they have some useful info.
True! this is a spam and people actually create an auto-generated blog uing this technique. All most, all my posts related to stocks and mutual funds are picked up by a group of parasite blogs with a trackback to my original posts.
There is very litile one can do to prevent this. However, one can always switch to Summary RSS instead of Full RSS to minimize the damage. So, even if these plogs (oh! I just coined a new term! Renie, do I get a copy right on this? 
) pick up your post through automated tools through Google Blog Search or other blog searches they will only get the Post summary.
What's do you think of this strategy?
Manish | PersonalMoney.in | Review My Blog PersonalMoney.in
Hey Manish, great idea, but what about the traditional copy-paste plagiarism
i didn't even know there was something like searchcamp in india. this is one area that interests me ... i miss it :(
As for a free service that monitors your feed:
Thanks Renie.
Good explanation.
What is an aggregator??
Copyscape is a good way to find out Plagiarism, but to protect your content get a Creative Commons licence.
I have a query, not sure if it comes under plagiarism or copyrights issue. Say I search google for some pics which matches the context of my post, and display them on a post of mine, would that be illegal?
What about if i show a movie clip or trailer?Can I get into trouble for that?
Thanks Dear, I was searching for a site that would provide with free images to use on my blog.
One more query related to this, I recently used an Image from a flickr photostream but I did give the credits to the guy/gal, can I still be in trouble (Actually, I even sent him a comment on his account mentioning that if he had any problems then I would make sure that the pic is taken down)
Hey,thanx for the info
Good Info, Hemal!
Thanks for the website, I always had problems with images (sources). I guess "sxc" will solve the problem.
One more query, now that I have found the perpetrators/plagiarists how should I get the plagiarised article removed or how should I compel them to remove it for me?
Yup.. These are just RSS republishers.. You will encounter them as you get popular and you wont be able to do anything about them.. There is one solution.. Just have a look at my blog posts.. I have inserted a link to each post at the end of each post.. In this way, if your feed is republished, it will carry the link to your original article.. This wont prevent the plagiarism but it will give you credits.. And in some cases, you will get the link benefits too!!
mindblogging ..
Thanks for introducing 'budding' bloggers like me to such malicious things that exists. But if the permalink goes along, I dont mind being plagiarized.
@Renie :Copygator is excellent.thanks:)
@Hemal :thanks for the link to copyright free images,I have always struggled with that while downloading images from the web.
@all :great thread
Cheers,Gee
www.sxc.hu is a great site. I second Hemal on that.
Just one point to keep in mind:
1) Always credit the source. Also link the photographer's name back to his/her gallery.
2) Ensure that you thank the owner of the photograph. You can do this by leaving a link of your post in the space provided for leaving your comment on the right hand side bottom of each picture in SXC. (This ensures at least one click to your post )
3) Ensure that the photo you use in your blog does not expand / blow up. Some photographers have objection to this.
Of course you need to sign up for SXC. It is free - mostly. They also have premium photographs (not very expensive though).
As far as the original question of plagiarism, plagiarism by definition is use of intellectual material without acknowledgement. In the blog world it is a big no-no. So while you can quote anyone, remember to credit.
i think get the Creative Commons License and use copyscape... bring it to notice to the bloggers who have plagiarised your articles... tell them if thy do not remove articles or mention you as author of it you'll take action.
@ Parv,how do you control it on the social networking sites.I have seen people copying my poems into their "about me" section on orkut after seeing it on my profile but there was nothing I could do except telling them to either credit me with work or remove it from their profile.
de best way is to get de aid of COPYSCAPE. ALSO get yer contents copywrited. get de creative common license.
happy bloggin dude
