Plagiarism is a serious crime and a growing trend in our society today. Some may associate plagiarism with the idea of ​​taking someone else's writing and making it your own. In fact, plagiarism involves anything that is copied or taken and believed to be your work. Dictionary.com defines plagiarism as “the unauthorized use or faithful imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and representing them as one's own original work, for example by not crediting the author.” In reality this definition covers all types of cheating and misrepresentation of one's work. There are many numbers and statistics that can be found on the number of people who have admitted to cheating. Perhaps the most startling number is that reported by Moeck in 2002 that 40 percent of higher education students commit academic dishonesty. I'm sure this number has grown from this report and will continue to grow as the Internet develops. There are several ideas and strategies that can be adopted to stop this ever-growing phenomenon. As teachers and adults, we have a responsibility to stop this trend and educate students about the consequences and dangers of plagiarism. I believe there are several reasons why people plagiarize. First, students are insecure about their abilities; they don't believe they can do the job so they hire others. Second, students believe they can get away with it because they know others who have plagiarized and there have been no consequences. Finally, students are not educated about what plagiarism is and do not know the consequences of their actions if they commit an act. These ideas will be at the heart of the position taken on plagiarism in today's academic society. So......half of the article......A_V19_I1_Langdon_Neuner1.pdfLoutzenhiser, K., Pita, A., & Reed, J. (2006). Revisiting plagiarism in the Internet age: How modern technology contributes to the problem and solutions. Journal of College Teaching and Learning, 3(8), 55-62. Retrieved from http://journals.cluteonline.com/index.php/TLC/article/viewArticle/1693Martin, A. (2006). Plagiarism. Retrieved from http://www.termpaperscorner.com/articles/plagiarism.htmlMoeck, P. (2002). Academic dishonesty: Cheating among community college students.Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 29: 470-491.Frequently asked questions about plagiarism. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2011, from http://www.plagiarism.org/plag_article_plagiarism_faq.htmplagiarism. (n.d.). © Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.. Retrieved November 1, 2011, from the Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/plagiarism