NY law provides that people who sell term papers to others are committing a crime. While the student himself might be discliplined and expelled for using a term paper written by someone else and proffering it as their own, this law is designed to reach the seller.
Recently I was asked if the law would apply to the sale of term papers online. It should. NY (and other states) have what is called a "long arm statute") that permits the state to reach beyod its borders, online and offline, to apply its laws when the person has reason to know that NY state laws might apply to them. While there is a long list of cases and academic writings on this, the short answer is that if the person knows they are dealing with NY residents, is advertising to NY residents or has some kind of contact in NY, the laws could apply.
Several other states have similar laws.
Sale of term papers - NY law:
Title I, Article 5, Section 213-b of the New York State Education Law provides in pertinent part that: "No person shall, for financial consideration, or the promise of financial consideration, prepare, offer to prepare, cause to be prepared, sell or offer for sale to any person any written material which the seller knows, is informed, or has reason to believe is intended for submission as a dissertation, thesis, term paper, essay, report, or other written assignment by a student in a university, college, academy, school, or other educational institution to such institution or to a course, seminar, or degree program held by such institution."
