It's not a dumb question at all! When you post an essay or any written work online for advice or review, there is a possibility that it could be indexed by search engines or stored in a database that might be accessible to plagiarism checking software later on.
Many plagiarism checkers, like Turnitin or others, maintain databases of student papers, essay submissions, and other written content to compare against new submissions. If your work is posted on a public platform or a forum where it can be publicly accessed, it could potentially become part of the databases used by these services.
To avoid this, you have a couple of options:
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Check the Platform's Policy: Before posting, look for the platform's policy regarding user content. Some platforms may explicitly state that submissions may be stored or used in a way that could affect their originality checks.
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Use Private or Secure Platforms: If you want feedback without the risk of creating a permanent record, consider seeking feedback from trusted individuals in private forums, or using services that guarantee your content won’t be stored.
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Consider Anonymity: If you must post your essay publicly, consider anonymizing it or posting excerpts rather than the whole piece.
Always be cautious about where and how you share your work online, especially if you plan to submit it for academic or professional purposes later.