apparently so. i stopped using turnitin a few years ago because i thought submitting my student’s papers seemed a bit unethical. a federal appeals court has ruled that turnitin storing student papers is just fair use. i guess i was wrong.
The court stepped through the fair use analysis, dropping positive notes here (commercial uses can be fair uses), here (a use can be transformative ‘in function or purpose without altering or actually adding to the original work,’ citing Perfect 10 Inc. v. Amazon.com Inc.), and here (fact that turnitin.com used the entirety of the plaintiff’s work did not preclude finding of fair use). And it turned back a lot of other, small-bore challenges to the district court’s fair use finding.
while it still doesn’t feel right, i suppose i can take some solace in the fact that “fair use” is getting a win.