How to spot a pirated or photocopied book before you buy
By the ApnaBook team · 2 min read · Updated
Pirated copies of popular novels and exam books are common, and they are not always sold knowingly — a second-hand seller may simply have bought one without realising. A fake copy is not just a legal problem: missing pages, smudged diagrams and misprinted formulas can cost you marks. These are the checks that catch most of them.
Start with the print quality
Open the book at a page with small text, a table or a diagram. Genuine books have sharp, evenly black text. Pirated copies are usually printed from scans, so letters look slightly fuzzy or bold, fine lines in diagrams break up, and photos look grainy or too dark.
- Text that is greyish, smudged or uneven in darkness from page to page.
- Diagrams, graphs and chemical structures with broken or blurred lines.
- Pages that are slightly crooked, or margins that change from page to page.
- Colour pages in a book that should have them now printed in black and white.
Feel the paper and the binding
Fakes are made cheaply. The paper is often thinner, so text from the next page shows through, and it may feel rough or newsprint-like. The cover can be on thin card with a shiny finish that peels at the corners. Glue binding on a pirated copy tends to crack quickly, and you may see pages that are a different size from the rest.
Look closely at the cover
Compare the cover with the publisher's image online. Colours on a fake are often a little off, the barcode may be blurry, and the spine text may not be centred. Spelling mistakes in the blurb or the author's name are a strong giveaway. Some publishers add a hologram sticker or a printed security mark; if the genuine edition has one and this copy does not, be careful.
Check the price against the condition
A "brand new" copy of a current bestseller or a popular exam book for a small fraction of its printed price, especially from someone selling several identical copies, is a warning sign. Genuine second-hand books are cheap because they are used, not because they are new and mysteriously discounted.
Why it matters for exam books in particular
For novels, a poor copy is mostly an annoyance. For JEE, NEET, board or other exam preparation, a missing page of solutions or a misprinted value in a formula can mislead you while you study. If you are not sure a copy is genuine, it is worth paying a little more for one you can trust.
If you find a fake listed on ApnaBook
Use the Report option on the listing. Our community guidelines do not allow counterfeit or pirated books — photocopies included — to be sold, and reported listings are reviewed by our team.
Questions or a correction? Write to us through the contact page. Before meeting anyone, please also read our community guidelines.