1. 4. Intellectual Property and Ethics on the Web 59

2. Intellectual Property “The physical expression of ideas contained in books, music, plays, movies, and computer software.” 59

3. What Is Plagiarism? 60

4. Proper Attribution Any time you source someone else's words or ideas, they MUST be given credit by linking to that thought or quote. 61

5. Copyright Copyright infringement is a legal issue. Copyright infringement occurs when works protected by copyright are used without consent. 62

6. Copyright Misunderstanding that registration is required to obtain copyright. Copyright is secured automatically upon creation. 62

7. Copyright As a real estate professional, assume that everything you see on the Web is copyrighted, unless you have reason to believe otherwise. 62

8. Protecting Your Content and Respecting Others 63

9. 6 Levels of Creative Commons Licenses Attribution Attribution Share Alike Attribution No Derivatives Attribution Non-Commercial Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 64

10. Internet Tools to Protect Your Content We anticipate that recovery to be very location and price specific in Marin. 66

11. Copyscape 67

12. Someone took my content. Now what? 1.Contact the individual and politely ask him or her to remove the content or give you proper attribution. 2.If the individual doesn’t want to remove the material or give you attribution, you can report him or her to Web site hosts for violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Use the Internet Archive if there is a question as to when the content was published. 68

13. Web Site and Blogging Policies They set expectations. They talk about how you deal with problems. They talk about how you deal with Flamers and Internet Trolls. They talk about how you deal with spam. 68

14. 69

15. Article 12 Be honest and truthful in real estate communications. Present true picture in advertising, marketing, and other representations. Ensure that status as real estate professionals is readily apparent in advertising/marketing/other representations, and that recipients are, or have been, notified that those communications are from real estate professional. 69

16. Standard of Practice 12-5 Cannot advertise real estate services or listed property in any medium without disclosing name of REALTOR ® ’s firm in reasonable and readily apparent manner. This also applies to people employed by or affiliated with REALTORS ®. 70

17. Standard of Practice 12-8 Obligation to present true picture includes information on REALTORS ® ’ Web sites. Use reasonable efforts to ensure that information on Web sites is current. Take prompt and corrective action when it is apparent that information is not current or accurate. 70

18. Standard of Practice 12-9 REALTOR ® firm Web sites shall disclose the firm’s name and state(s) of licensure in a reasonable and readily apparent manner. Web sites of REALTORS ® and affiliated non-member licensees shall disclose firm’s name and that REALTOR ® ’s or non-member licensee’s state(s) of licensure in a reasonable and readily apparent manner. 71

19. Standard of Practice 12-10 REALTORS ® are prohibited from: 1)Engaging in deceptive or unauthorized framing of real estate brokerage Web sites; 2)Manipulating listing content that produces a deceptive or misleading result; or 3)Deceptively using metatags, keywords or other devices/methods to direct/drive/divert Internet traffic, or to otherwise mislead consumers. 71

20. Standard of Practice 12-11 REALTORS ® intending to share or sell consumer information gathered via the Internet shall disclose that possibility in a reasonable and readily apparent manner. 72

21. Standard of Practice 12-12 REALTORS ® shall not: 1)Use URLs or domain names that present less than a true picture 2)Register URLs or domain names which, if used, would present less than a true picture 72

22. Article 15 REALTORS® shall not knowingly or recklessly make false or misleading statements about competitors, their businesses, or their business practices. SOP 15-2 (updated 1/10) obligation to refrain from making false or misleading statements updated to include the internet SOP 15-3 (adopted 1/10) adds obligation to make a clarifying statement or remove statements in blog comments made by others if they are false or misleading 73

23. Social Media Landmines Always make sure that your company name and professional status are apparent on every electronic communication you make. Be careful about posting information about your meetings with clients or other real estate professionals. Don’t complain, brag, or even talk about your client’s reactions to property. 76

24. Fair Housing Fair housing issues legislated by: Civil Rights Act of 1866 Fair Housing Act Americans with Disabilities Act Your state and local laws In addition, REALTORS® are obligated under Article 10 of NAR’s Code of Ethics, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or sexual orientation in providing professional services or in our hiring practices 76-77

25. Fair Housing Anytime we interact in social environments online we are still obligated by fair housing laws and regulations and NAR’s Code of Ethics Remember, even your tweets on Twitter and your Facebook news feed are forms of publication 77