Dissertation plagiarism: Recent developments and strategies for communicating with authors

Since the start of 2024 Columbia University Libraries has identified an increase in dissertation plagiarism. Bad actors copy dissertations and sell them online as books, either with the original titles and author names, or - more difficult to catch - with altered titles and author names. These incidents are frustrating for authors, who, as copyright holders, are faced with the daunting task of addressing the unauthorized use of their work. For repository staff, dissertation plagiarism also presents a messaging challenge: though plagiarism is not a new problem, dissertations that are openly available online can seem more vulnerable to being stolen. What steps can open repositories take to help prevent dissertation plagiarism and, when it happens, to support dissertation authors as they attempt to thwart this unauthorized use of their work?

This presentation will:

• Provide a report on recent plagiarism of works in Academic Commons, the Columbia University
  repository
• Share documentation (https://academiccommons.columbia.edu/faq#theses) developed to help
  authors monitor use of and respond to the theft of their work
• Include time for participants to share back updates related to plagiarism and their IRs