Plagiarism and its consequences When writing an academic piece of writing, it is important for the writer to understand that the reader assumes that all information contained in the The writing is the original ideas of the writer. However, our knowledge on a given topic may be limited and we often need to find additional sources of information. It is both ethical and legal for a writer to acknowledge all sources of information and ideas that they use in their writing. There should always be a clear distinction between where the original author's ideas end and those from other sources begin. Plagiarism is not in all cases an intentional act. In some cases, it is purely unintentional. Those responsible for checking academic writing have developed several ways to detect plagiarism in a piece of writing. There are those who reread the submitted work as many times as possible to establish its authenticity. Computer science experts have developed complex algorithmic programs that detect this characteristic in academic work (Faidhi & Robinson 1987). Others have decided to have students use their own experiences as a major point of reference when approaching their academic tasks. Most universities have policy statements that state their stance against plagiarism and outline the consequences of this behavior. There are still establishments that use an honor system in which students agree not to cheat and to notify the authorities if such an act is discovered. Plagiarism, despite all these controls, continues to be a problem in academic circles. In the Journal of Information Ethics this is discussed in depth. First, because in most cases plagiarism is difficult to detect. Only a few cases are discovered and when they are fewer, the culprits face severe measures. Most detected...... middle of paper ......when a writer extracts parts of another writer's work and includes it in their own original writing. There are several ways a writer can avoid plagiarism. Proper citation is helpful. When using another person's idea, it is necessary to use quotation marks correctly and always acknowledge the source. Sometimes a writer uses their own words to acknowledge a concept or information that is not considered general or common knowledge. In this case, the writer must acknowledge the original source of the idea. There are tougher ways to combat plagiarism. A tutor can invoke fear of consequences in their students by imposing plagiarism-related sanctions. This tactic has proven effective with students. A more productive approach is to rethink course assignments and give assignments that bring out the creative side rather than the generic side of tutors..