The Similarity Report

iThenticate compares files against an ever expanding database of Internet pages, archived pages that might not be available any more, a subscription repository of periodicals, journals, publications, and a repository of previously submitted files.

Interpreting the Similarity Report

iThenticate does not check for plagiarism in a submission. It checks a submission against the content database, and if there are instances where the submission's content is similar to, or matches against, one or more sources, it will be flagged for review. The database includes billions of web pages (both current and archived content), a repository of work that has been submitted to Turnitin in the past, a collection of documents, which comprises of thousands of periodicals, journals, publications, and CrossRef member content.

It is perfectly natural for a submission to match against sources in the database. If the submission has used quotes and has referenced correctly, there will be instances where there will be a match. The similarity score simply makes the user aware of any problem areas in the submission; iThenticate should be used as part of a larger process, in order to determine if the match is or is not acceptable.