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Ethical Considerations When Using Content with AI 

When using AI tools, think carefully about any content you might share or upload with the tool and consider important ethical questions such as: 

  • Who created the content? If you upload content to an AI tool, make sure the content is permitted to be used in that way. In most cases: 
    • If you are using someone else’s content, you should not upload it unless you have verified that the creator or seller/vendor of the content permits it to be used in that way. 
    • If you created the content, you do not need permission from anyone else to use it in AI tools. 
  • Will the content be kept private?  What you share with most GenAI platforms will not be kept private. You will not have control over how the content you share or upload to AI tools will be used in the future. JMU’s agreements with the companies behind approved campus platforms ensure alignment with campus privacy standards and principles.  

Using content from JMU Libraries in Generative AI Tools 

If you are using someone else’s content, you must have permission from the creator or seller/vendor of that content before you upload it or share it with an AI tool. This includes content you find in the JMU Libraries collections. 

Usage of the content we provide is governed by the agreements we sign with the vendors who sell it to us. Some of our vendor agreements restrict or prohibit the use of their content in AI systems. Therefore, before using any JMU Libraries’ content with AI, verify whether the vendor permits such use: 

  • If the library content is from a database, visit our Databases list and look for a “Permitted Uses” dropdown below the database that hosts the content you want to use with AI. 
  • If the library content is not from a database, use our Library Search tool and look for the “Show License” link when viewing the Library Search page about the content of interest.   

If our Databases list or Library Search tool indicate that AI use is prohibited, do not upload or share the content to an AI tool—doing so would violate our contracts and licenses. Such violations could impact access to resources.  

Unsure whether you can use certain content in an AI tool? Request a consultation and select “Artificial Intelligence in Research, Teaching, and Learning.” 

AI and Copyright 

Concerns related to GenAI and copyright are complex and currently evolving. According to a January 2025 report from the U.S. Copyright Office, products of AI are not considered to be copyrightable, but human-made content made with assistance from AI may be copyrightable. 

Visit the Copyright at JMU guide for more information on AI and copyright. 

AI and Citations  

In some circumstances, you need to indicate the use of AI-generated content in your work or other assistance from AI on work authored by you.

Major style guides such as The Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition), the Modern Language Association (9th edition), and the American Psychological Association (7th edition) have published guidance on citing AI, but this guidance is evolving.  

Get Help or More Information 

Your Liaison Librarian can help you navigate citation requirements for your discipline.  

Visit our AI in Education Guide to learn how to acknowledge your own use of generative AI to assist with writing, analyzing data, or generating images used in your work.