Legal Help In The Age Of Artificial Intelligence
In academics, the principles of integrity, originality and genuine fairness are paramount. When these principles are violated or even alleged to have been compromised, the consequences can be severe, affecting a student’s academic record, career prospects, and personal reputation. The same goes true for teachers and professors accused of any form of misconduct. Given the high stakes, it is super important when faced with such an existential threat to hit the pause button, take a deep breath and reflect objectively about the situation, the accusation and the appropriate response. Before you provide a response, formally or informally speak with administration, think carefully, do not react defensively and hastily. It may greatly behove you to consult with competent attorneys who practice in the area of academic integrity and have knowledge of AI, plagiarism, cheating and other forms of misconduct accusations. Attorneys experienced in academic integrity and misconduct should offer crucial guidance, investigatory resources and zealous representation to navigate these turbulent waters, demand due process and protect you from the blind momentum of the administrative machine.
Understanding Academic Integrity and Misconduct
Academic integrity refers to the ethical standards and honesty that students and faculty are expected to follow in their scholarly pursuits. It is the foundation upon which the academic community builds trust, respects intellectual property, and fosters an environment of learning and innovation. Conversely, academic misconduct includes actions that directly contravene these principles, such as plagiarism, improper use of AI, cheating, fabrication, and facilitating dishonesty. The consequences of academic misconduct allegations can be far-reaching, including academic probation, suspension, expulsion, and a permanent mark on one’s academic and professional record. Given these potential repercussions, it is essential to approach such allegations with a strategic and informed defense. Again, stop, think carefully, utilize proper resources and consult attorneys before responding to such an accusation.
The Role of Attorneys in Academic Integrity Cases
Good attorneys should provide 360 degrees of support. Attorneys specializing in academic integrity and misconduct cases serve as invaluable allies for individuals accused of violations. Their role encompasses several key areas:
Expert Guidance: Navigating the policies and procedures of academic institutions can be daunting. Attorneys provide expert guidance on the specific regulations governing academic misconduct, understanding (and challenging if necessary) the internal rules and application of those rules, and ensuring that a proper measure of due process is provided. Attorneys should also make sure that the clients fully understand their rights and the allegations against them.
Strategic Defense: Every case requires a tailored defense strategy based on the specific circumstances and evidence at hand. Attorneys critically analyze the case, investigate, gather relevant evidence, and prepare a robust defense to challenge the allegations. Whether it be a conciliatory approach, fully cooperating or strongly taking issue and utilizing all technical and legal challenges, your defense depends on a great many fact specific and contextual variables.
Artificial Intelligence, the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Colleges and universities have been exploring and deploying various AI detection tools to determine whether a student’s submission has been generated by AI, including GPT models like ChatGPT. These tools have been developed to help educators identify content that may not have been authentically created by the student. Here’s a quick look at some of the known AI detection tools, how they work, their potential margins of error, and how their accuracy might be challenged. Keep in mind that this technology is continually developing, will inevitably have a significant margin of error, is being “fixed” or improved in real time – utilizing post role out feedback to fix glitches, and cannot fairly be relied upon as the exclusive basis for an accusation of AI generated authorship.
AI Detection Tools Used by Educational Institutions
Turnitin’s Authorship Investigate:
How It Works: Turnitin, promotes its product as a AI generated work and plagiarism detection software, developed “Authorship Investigate” to use a combination of stylometry and machine learning to analyze writing style and identify inconsistencies in student submissions. It examines factors such as sentence structure, word usage, and document metadata to assess whether the work is consistent with a student’s previous submissions or was composed by AI.
Margin of Error: Not surprisingly, Turnitin does not advertise the margin of error, which the company has never clearly stated. In fact, when the product was launched, the Company claimed that the margin of error was 1% or less. We certainly do not believe this to be the case. Not only can the margin of error vary based on the amount of work tested and the variability of previously submitted work, but there may be good reason to dig a little deeper into the accuracy of the software’s application in each case. At Giordano Law Offices, we understand how to review the reliability of Turnitin findings. Turnitin states that the accuracy improves with more data but is is nonetheless far from foolproof. We are always on the lookout for false positives. Did the college or university relying on Turnitin acknowledge that the Turnitin report include an asterisk with a message cautioning on the result and possibility of a false positive? Has a false positive been generated for other reasons, for example, authorized review software such as Grammarly?
Challenging Accuracy: Since this tool relies on comparing a student’s past writing, significant improvements in a student’s writing style or using legitimate assistance (like tutoring) could potentially lead to false positives. Challenges can emphasize these aspects to question the tool’s conclusions. Turnitin’s AI-detection tool provides calibrations at both the sentence and the document level. Bear in mind that though the Company has sometimes claimed that the sentence-level false positive rate is approximately 4 percent, the software appears to have difficulty with text that mixes AI-generated and human- written prose. For example, 54% of false positive (human-written) sentences are located directly alongside AI-written sentences. And 26% of false positive sentences are located two sentences away from an AI-written sentence.
GPTZero
How It Works: GPTZero attempts to detect AI-generated text by looking for patterns that are commonly found in text generated by models like GPT-3. It checks for characteristics such as repetition, coherence, and the presence of certain telltale markers that distinguish AI writing from human writing. Like similar AI detection tools, GPTZero relies on specific characteristics or “telltale markers” to distinguish AI-generated text from human-written text. While the specific algorithms and methodologies of GPTZero and other tools have not been fully disclosed, general principles for analysis include:
- Perplexity: Perplexity measures how well a probability model predicts a sample. In the context of AI detection, it assesses how expected (or unexpected) the sequence of words in a text is. AI-generated texts tend to have lower perplexity because they are more likely to use common word sequences and patterns.
Application: Tools like GPTZero use perplexity to gauge whether the text flows too smoothly or predictably, as is often the case with AI-generated content. - Burstiness: Burstiness refers to the variation in sentence complexity and vocabulary within a text. Human writing often shows variability in these areas—some sentences might be complex and others simple, reflecting the natural ebb and flow of human thought.
Application: AI-generated texts might lack this variability, displaying a more uniform level of complexity and vocabulary use. Detection tools analyze the text for burstiness to identify unnatural consistency that might indicate AI authorship. - Semantic Coherence and Consistency: This marker examines how well the ideas and topics in a text are maintained throughout, without irrelevant digressions or illogical transitions. AI-generated texts can sometimes introduce inconsistencies or fail to maintain thematic coherence.
Application: Detection tools assess the text for logical progression and thematic consistency, looking for signs that the content might have been generated by an AI lacking a deep, intuitive understanding of the topic. - Repetitiveness: AI models, especially earlier versions or those not fine-tuned, can exhibit a tendency to repeat words, phrases, or ideas more frequently than a human writer might. Application: Detection software scans the text for patterns of repetition that surpass typical human writing habits, which might indicate the content was generated by an AI.
- Use of Filler and Fluff: AI-generated text might include more “filler” content—words or phrases that don’t add significant value to the text but serve to make it longer or sound more complex.
Application: Tools look for an overuse of such filler content as a potential sign of AI authorship, as human writers are generally more likely to be concise or to vary their use of detail. It’s important to note that AI text generation technology is rapidly evolving, and so are the methods to detect such content. Tools like GPTZero continuously update their algorithms to keep pace with advancements in AI writing capabilities. Additionally, these markers are not foolproof; sophisticated AI models can mimic human writing styles closely, and human writers may sometimes exhibit characteristics similar to those flagged as indicative of AI. Therefore, the presence of these markers should be considered indicative rather than conclusive evidence of AI authorship.
Detection accuracy can vary, and both false positives (identifying human-written text as AI-generated) and false negatives (failing to identify AI-generated text) can occur. The interpretation of these markers often requires additional context, and the use of detection tools should be complemented with human judgment and oversight. Margin of Error: The developer of GPTZero and similar tools often caution that these are not 100% accurate and may misclassify sophisticated AI-generated text as human- written or vice versa, especially as AI technology evolves.
Challenging Accuracy: Inaccuracies can be highlighted by demonstrating instances where the tool has misclassified human-written text as AI-generated or has failed to detect sophisticated AI-generated content. And again, you should always challenge the accuracy of the results and request the data.
Copyleaks AI Content Detector
How It Works: Copyleaks uses advanced algorithms to analyze text for the likelihood of AI generation. It examines the uniqueness, complexity, and other stylistic features that might differentiate AI-written content from human-written content.
Margin of Error: Like other tools, Copyleaks does not claim 100% accuracy and acknowledges that there can be false positives and negatives. The exact margin of error is not publicly disclosed and can depend on the text’s complexity and the AI model used for generation. Some who have analyzed Copyleaks have suggested that there are some troubling aspects of the software and potential for false positives. (See this for example)
Challenging Accuracy: One could argue that the tool may not accurately reflect the nuances of individual writing styles or the evolving capabilities of AI text generators, potentially leading to erroneous classifications.
General Considerations for Challenging AI Detection Software Accuracy
Evolving Technology: AI and AI detection technologies are rapidly evolving. As AI models become more sophisticated, detection tools may struggle to keep up, potentially increasing both false positives and false negatives.
Contextual Analysis: Some arguments against the accuracy of AI detection tools might include their potential inability to understand context or the use of domain-specific jargon and syntax, which can mimic patterns seen in AI-generated text.
Transparency and Methodology: Many AI detection tools do not fully disclose their methodologies, making it difficult to assess their reliability or challenge their findings effectively. Critics argue for more transparency to understand how these tools draw their conclusions.
In conclusion, while AI detection tools may offer assistance in identifying AI- generated content, they are not infallible. Their effectiveness can vary, and there are legitimate grounds to challenge their accuracy, particularly given the lack of transparency about their algorithms and the inherent limitations of current technology. As with any form of automated detection, these tools should be used as part of a broader assessment strategy that considers the content’s context, the student’s history, and the educational goals at hand. It is important for you and your attorney to examine whether the broader assessment was undertaken, and then to question carefully those additional aspects of an allegation of misconduct.
Advocacy and Representation
Attorneys advocate on behalf of their clients, representing them in hearings and discussions with academic institutions, when permitted and are consistently in the background working to coach the client on what and what not to do, how to present evidence and navigate the applicable rules. For cases involving accusations of improper use of AI, attorneys should be able to muster all resources to challenge the detection software and algorithms that were used upon which the accusation of academic misconduct was based. Their objective is to ensure a fair process and to mitigate the potential consequences of the allegations. Negotiation and Resolution: In some cases, a resolution may be reached through negotiation with the institution. Attorneys can negotiate on behalf of their clients to achieve a more favorable outcome, such as reduced sanctions or alternative
resolutions.
Appeals: Should the initial decision be unfavorable, attorneys can assist with the appeal process, providing another opportunity to challenge the findings and sanctions. The involvement of an attorney can significantly impact the outcome of academic integrity and misconduct cases.
You may contact Giordano Law Offices for a free initial consultation of your case.