# Achievement 3: Content Etiquette - Understanding Plagiarism and Copyright rules
Hello Steemit Community! I am back to complete my Achievement 3 task under the Newcomers Program. Having successfully cleared my security guidelines in Achievement 2, I want to share my understanding of a cornerstone rule of this platform: Content Etiquette and Plagiarism.
As a digital Content Creator, Video Editor, and Graphic Designer for the past 5 years, protecting intellectual property is something I deal with daily. In this post, I will explain what plagiarism is, why it is deeply harmful, and how we can properly respect creative rights on the Steemit blockchain.
🚫 What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism means taking someone else's work, ideas, words, or creative designs and presenting them as your own without giving proper credit to the original creator.
On a decentralized platform like Steemit, where users are rewarded financially for their creativity, plagiarism is considered a serious offense. It undermines the trust of the community and ruins the reputation of the platform.
Common Types of Plagiarism:
- Direct Plagiarism: Copying someone else's text or graphics word-for-word and pasting it into your blog without modification or citation.
- Paraphrasing Plagiarism: Rewriting someone else's ideas slightly in your own words but failing to acknowledge the original source.
- Patchwork Plagiarism: Mixing sentences from different websites together to form a paragraph without citing any of them.
📸 The Rules of Fair Use and Proper Citation
To avoid any copyright issues, a professional creator must follow the rules of proper citation. If you must use an excerpt of text or a reference photo belonging to another person, you must explicitly declare the owner.
1. Text Citation Example:
To quote a definition or an official sentence, we use the HTML/Markdown blockquote system (>).
"Plagiarism is the representation of another author's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work."
— Source: Wikipedia
2. Image Citation Example:
When using stock images or references, it is best to use copyright-free websites like Unsplash, Pexels, or Pixabay. Even then, giving a source link is highly appreciated on Steemit.
Layout example: [Image Source Name](URL link of the photo website)
🤝 My Commitment to the Steemit Community
"I have read and understood the Steemit Etiquette on the Steemit Community and will do my best to embrace them."
I pledge to:
- Only post 100% unique graphic designs, editing breakdowns, and articles created entirely by me.
- Explicitly cite and give visible backlinks to the original source if I ever use external assets.
- Keep the ecosystem clean, safe, and professional for fellow Steemians.
Thank you to the Steemit verification team, curators, and Greeters for reviewing my Achievement 3 task!
Warm regards,
Qasim Khokhar
Username: @qdesignblog