According to the Collins Dictionary of the English language (Hanks, 1979),

plagiarism is the act of plagiarizing, which is to steal ideas or passages

from anothers work and present them as ones own. In other words
plagiarism is the act of presenting another persons work through essay,
speech, write up or electronically. Intentionally or unintentionally reproducing
merely copying, rewording, paraphrasing, adapting, work that was produced
by another person(s) without proper acknowledgement in an attempt to gain
academic benefit, merit or reward. Intentionally or nonchalantly allowing
such reproduction to happen may also complement plagiarism.
Copying someone else's work without acknowledging is actually a violation of
that person right over his intellectual property. Legally, plagiarism is a
subject matter of copyright violation law, and can bring legal and monetary
retribution for the violators sometimes, penalties for plagiarism can comprise
criminal punishments and imprisonment, and the offender may be penalized
to compensate for the loss of profit of the original writer.
The least obvious disadvantage of plagiarizing is that it stifles any creative
effort on the part of the plagiarist. Without the conception and realization of
new thought, progress, both of the individual and of the affected society,
grinds to a halt. Rethinking old knowledge and articulating it in an original
way encourages further originality, refreshes the subject, and fosters respect
for the legal and/or intellectual property of others.
The teacher cannot assess whether the student has learned anything if she
doesn't complete the writing on her own. Teachers have objectives they want
students to meet, and writing can show if these objectives are met.

6 Consequences of Plagiarism
The consequences of plagiarism can be personal, professional, ethical, and
legal. With plagiarism detection software so readily available and in use,
plagiarists are being caught at an alarming rate. Once accused of plagiarism,
a person will most likely always be regarded with suspicion. Ignorance is not
an excuse. Plagiarists include academics, professionals, students, journalists,
authors, and others.
Consequences of plagiarism include:
Destroyed Student Reputation
Plagiarism allegations can cause a student to be suspended or expelled.
Their academic record can reflect the ethics offense, possibly causing the
student to be barred from entering college from high school or another
college. Schools, colleges, and universities take plagiarism very seriously.
Most educational institutions have academic integrity committees who police
students. Many schools suspend students for their first violation. Students
are usually expelled for further offences.
Destroyed Professional Reputation
A professional business person, politician, or public figure may find that the
damage from plagiarism follows them for their entire career. Not only will
they likely be fired or asked to step down from their present position, but
they will surely find it difficult to obtain another respectable job. Depending
on the offense and the plagiarists public stature, his or her name may
become ruined, making any kind of meaningful career impossible.
Destroyed Academic Reputation
The consequences of plagiarism have been widely reported in the world of
academia. Once scarred with plagiarism allegations, an academics career
can be ruined. Publishing is an integral part of a prestigious academic career.
To lose the ability to publish most likely means the end of an academic
position and a destroyed reputation.
Legal Repercussions
The legal repercussions of plagiarism can be quite serious. Copyright laws
are absolute. One cannot use another persons material without citation and
reference. An author has the right to sue a plagiarist. Some plagiarism may
also be deemed a criminal offense, possibly leading to a prison sentence.
Those who write for a living, such as journalists or authors, are particularly
susceptible to plagiarism issues. Those who write frequently must be evervigilant not to err. Writers are well-aware of copyright laws and ways to avoid

plagiarism. As a professional writer, to plagiarize is a serious ethical and

perhaps legal issue.
Monetary Repercussions
Many recent news reports and articles have exposed plagiarism by
journalists, authors, public figures, and researchers. In the case where an
author sues a plagiarist, the author may be granted monetary restitution. In
the case where a journalist works for a magazine, newspaper or other
publisher, or even if a student is found plagiarizing in school, the offending
plagiarist could have to pay monetary penalties.
Plagiarized Research
Plagiarized research is an especially egregious form of plagiarism. If the
research is medical in nature, the consequences of plagiarism could mean
the loss of peoples lives. This kind of plagiarism is particularly heinous.
The consequences of plagiarism are far-reaching and no one is immune.
Neither ignorance nor stature excuses a person from the ethical and legal
ramifications of committing plagiarism. Before attempting any writing
project, learn about plagiarism. Find out what constitutes plagiarism and how
to avoid it. The rules are easy to understand and follow. If there is any
question about missing attribution, try using an online plagiarism checker or
plagiarism detection software to check your writing for plagiarism before
turning it in. Laziness or dishonesty can lead to a ruined reputation, the loss
of a career, and legal problems.

Consequences of Plagiarism
Academics
The growing problem of plagiarism in schools, colleges, and universities have
compelled the concerned authorities to take this issue quite seriously.
Plagiarism consequences in the academic field depend on the nature of the
mistake, and the number of times one commits it. Disciplinary action is taken
against the students who submit plagiarized papers. Teachers and/or the
administration of the institution have various ways of doing this, such as:
Giving a lower grade on the paper or course.
Giving a failing grade on the paper or course.
Asking the student to rewrite the paper.
Suspending the student for a period of time.
Expulsion of the student from the institution.
Putting the offense of plagiarism on the student's academic record.

Revoking the student's degree.

These are the usual penalties for plagiarism that a student usually has to
face for this malpractice. Plagiarism can cause considerable wastage of time,
money, and effort, and a student expelled from one institution can find it
really hard to get admission in any other reputed educational institution.
Perhaps the greatest consequence of plagiarism is the harm that students do
to themselves, as this habit can impair the ability of students to acquire the
essential skills required for researching and writing, which can have farreaching effect on their life and career.
Arts/Literature
It is, obviously, considered wrong that a journalist should plagiarize, though
plagiarism in this field is quite an old phenomenon. Some of the
consequences of plagiarism in journalism, and arts and literature include:
Loss of job and professional reputation (in case of journalism).
The act of plagiarism can be made public by the employer, which can cast
doubt on the honesty and integrity of the concerned journalist. This can
result in difficulty in finding another employment.
Plagiarism in both arts and literature, and journalism can attract legal actions
or lawsuits, as nowadays copyright laws are very stringent. The original
writer/artist can sue the journalist or the writer/artist copying his or her work,
which in the worst circumstances can lead to imprisonment.
Plagiarism in this field can also attract monetary penalties. If the act of
plagiarism is proved in the court, the violator may be required to give
compensation to the original author/writer/artist for his or her loss of profit.
Politics
There isn't that much scope for plagiarism in politics; in most of the
revelations so far, politicians' dissertations (for educational qualification such
as the doctorate), have been found to contain large chunks of material
copied from someone else. In a case involving a prime minister of a country,
it was found that a considerable part of his speech was copied from the
speech given by the prime minister of another country.
Some of the consequences that politicians accused of plagiarism can face
are:
He/she may have to resign from his position.
He/she may lose the trust of the people.
In future, any work that he/she produces may be excessively scrutinized.

Academic consequences
Plagiarism is a constant problem in schools because students create many documents doing a lot
of research in no time. Many schools, like high school and high school Baylor and Duke
University have bodies as the Council of Honor or the Office of Judicial Affairs to review each
case of plagiarism and determine punishment. Minor infractions can make you get a "0" in the
task, while major infractions occur suspension or expulsion. Anyway, plagiarism is embarrassing
to the student and future work will be examined more carefully than other students.

Professional consequences
Many reporters, writers, academics and artists have seen their personal and professional
reputations ruined by accusations of plagiarism. The kidnappers are not only interrupted their
current job, either by dismissal or cancellation of their contracts, but may also find problems for
future work. A particularly serious or memorable episode of plagiarism can ruin the reputation of
a person and force him to change careers to avoid the stigma of plagiarism.

Personal Consequences
Most consequences of plagiarism occur once the plagiarism is discovered, but personal
consequences occur regardless of any external impact. In discussing plagiarism, says Baylor
school students who practice fail to learn many of the skills for research and writing that the
school is intended to teach. After leaving school, these students lack the ability to produce
original material, as they have only cheated in the past. There is also a psychological impact
plagiarism as constant lies and deception can leave a mark on the psyche.

Legal Consequences
Besides all the personal and professional difficulties the plagiarist can produce, in some cases
there are legal consequences. Plagiarism of copyrighted material for profit can make the
plagiarist pay monetary damages, so the profits illicitly as other potential losses that the
plagiarist may have caused the original writer. In some cases, plagiarism can even make the
person facing criminal proceedings in which the result can range from fines to imprisonment.

References :
http://www.ithenticate.com/resources/6consequences-of-plagiarism

http://www.quora.com/What-are-theadvantages-and-disadvantages-ofplagiarism-by-university-students
http://www.answers.com/Q/The_disadvan
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say-on/Disadvantages-OfPlagiarism/111594
http://www.enotes.com/homeworkhelp/drawbacks-plagiarism-388023
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/conseque
nces-of-plagiarism-penalties-forplagiarism.html
http://www.hagopscoop.com/thedisadvantages-of-plagiarism/