The new piracy and plagiarism checkers are great for many people to use, not just department heads or professional writers. An editor can use one to make sure a submitted piece is unique, a student can use one if he or she is unsure if they used the correct quotations and intext citations for resources, and a teacher can use them for plagiarism checking. They are great tools, but they do come with some advice. Know our 8 things you need to know about an online piracy checker.

1. You can actually find some that do not cost a penny. They will have less functionality, but they do exist. Just check the reviews, ask your peers what they use, and do your homework. If you find the one you are using does not suit your needs, you can start over in your search.
2. If you will be submitting a rough and a final draft, make sure you enable the correct function. If you do not do this, you may find the report shows you are a pirate of your own work.
3. If you plan on writing a lot of pieces, you may want to buy a membership to one of the better apps or programs. The extra cost will be minimal, but you will get all the bells and whistles.
4. Your school may have an agreement with a piracy checker company. If they do, you may be able to use the platform for free. Go to the media center and ask if this is an option for you.
5. Find out whom the professionals use. I had to switch to three different companies before I found one that fit all my needs, but as a writer, I use it several times a day. It was recommended by another writer friend to me.
6. Find out if anything you check joins the Internet immediately, as tis could cause a problem for you when you actually submit your work. When these tools first came out, this was a big issues, but most of the companies have modified the tool so this is not an issue any more.
7. See if you can get a writer or student’s discount when you buy the program. It won’t hurt to ask.
8. Make sure that if it an app that you are using for a piracy checker, that you make the updates as they are released in order for the tool to remain efficient.