Using Information (Edexcel IGCSE ICT)

Revision Note

What to check	How?	Why?
Accuracy	Check that information is from a reputable source Does the information match other reputable sources Does the source provide any evidence	Information could be: Incomplete False
Age	Check publication date	Old or now false Too recent
Relevance	Check information's topic matches exactly what you were searching for	Ensure information matches topic you wanted
Reliability	Compare information against other sources of the same information	If it does not match it could be false or inaccurate
Bias	Does the source consider different viewpoints Is the source just facts or does it give extra context If source contains data/statistics, where did they come from?	Information could be prejudiced Only looking at one side of an argument/viewpoint

Copyright is covered under a law called the Copyright Designs & Patents Act
This protects the intellectual property of an individual or a company
It makes it illegal to copy, modify or distribute software or other intellectual property without the relevant permission
If original work is original, copyright will be automatically applied and will not expire until 25 - 70 years from the death of the creator depending on the type of work
If an individual believes that their work has been copied it is their responsibility to take action under the Copyright Designs and Patents Act
Many sites online offer free downloads of copyrighted software/videos which prevents the intellectual copyright holder from earning their income on the work they have created
- E.g. If someone downloaded videos from Netflix and shared them with others, they would be breaching the act
The act covers videos and audio where peer-to-peer streaming prevents a copyright owner from receiving an income

Plagiarism is when someone presents information or ideas from another source as their own, without giving credit to the original author
This can be done intestinally and unintentionally
They may also try to claim it as their own
A common example of digital plagiarism is copying and pasting from the internet
If someone uses another persons information and fails to state who it belongs to they are breaking their rights and committing plagiarism
To avoid plagiarism a user should rewrite or rephrases information
This shows you have read and understood information but can put it in your own words
To avoid plagiarism always state where the information came from, this can include the authors name or URL it was found on

Last updated: 14 June 2024

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