3.3: How can I protect myself against false accusations of using AI?
- Page ID
- 346967
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Unfortunately, as you’re probably aware, students are sometimes accused of using AI when they didn’t (See TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit for personal stories). This adds another layer of anxiety to the writing process: how do I prove I’m not a bot?
Wrongful accusations can happen because an instructor’s intuition is wrong. Maybe they think there’s a difference in sophistication and style between the essay they’re reading and something else the student wrote for class. Or maybe the writing style matches what they’ve seen from chatbots.
AI detection software can also get it wrong and flag human writing as AI. Even the companies that sell this software admit that they can’t prevent some “false positives.” Some researchers have raised concerns that the detectors may be biased against English language learners and/or neurodiverse students. For these reasons, there is lively debate about whether AI detection should be used in education.
Keep a record of your writing process
Fortunately, it’s possible to document your writing process so that you have evidence if any question is raised.
Google Docs and Word keep track of your version history, but you can show your process more clearly with an extension app that reports on time spent and copy/pastes and generates a video of the text’s evolution. Such extensions include ProcessFeedback.org, Grammarly Authorship, Integrito from PlagiarismCheck.org, Revision History, Draftback, and Txtreplay. Even if you didn’t use an extension while you were writing, you can install it after the fact and still have it analyze your process on a document. But before you use any of these, check the privacy policy. Will your writing be used to train AI? Will it be sold as data to third parties? In some systems you can change the default settings to protect yourself.
Another option is to screen-record as you write or, if you use speech recognition, record yourself talking.
Document and disclose any use of AI
Double-check the instructor’s guidance on any allowed use of AI. If you use AI, document your use. See Acknowledging and Citing Generative AI in Academic Work.
Your rights
Kathryn Conrad’s Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights for Education puts it this way: “You should be able to appeal academic misconduct charges if you are falsely accused of using any AI system inappropriately. If you are accused of using technology inappropriately, you should be invited to a conversation and allowed to show your work. Punitive responses to student abuse of generative technologies must be based on the same standard of evidence as any other academic misconduct charges. Critical AI literacy means that all parties recognize that detection tools are at present fallible and subject to false positives.”
Further reading
- The software says my student cheated using AI. They say they’re innocent. Who do I believe? By Robert Topinka, The Guardian
- Am I human? A personal & cognitive science-based perspective on the limitations and harms of “AI-detection” By Whitney Gegg-Harrison
- What to do when you’re accused of AI cheating by Geoffrey Fowler, The Washington Post
- What to do if you are falsely accused of cheating with AI by Dr. Lyndon Walker
- AI conversations: Handling false positives for students from Turnitin