Look, it's complicated. When it comes to AI tools like Perplexity AI, it is sometimes difficult to know what an "acceptable" use is, especially for students. Students rightly point out that Perplexity can simplify research, turning what used to be the tedious task of consulting dozens or even hundreds of different search engines, databases, and journal articles into the work of a few minutes. On the other hand, instructors worry that students can just ask Perplexity to do their work for them, undermining the very purpose of education.
It's difficult to sort out just what should and shouldn't be allowed when it comes to programs like Perplexity.
One thing is for sure, though: progress always marches on, and the AI genie cannot be put back into the bottle. Until we find answers to questions about what qualifies as responsible AI use, there are going to be conflicts—sometimes really big conflicts.
If your college or university has accused you of misusing Perplexity AI or some other new technology, it's important you act quickly to protect yourself. The campus judicial landscape is in chaos over these programs, and it's easy to get run over by a professor or a school administration with an axe to grind. The Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team understands the arguments, and we'll make sure your school honors your rights.
To find out more about how we can help with your case, call us at 888-535-3686 or take time right now to fill out our online form.
What Is Perplexity AI?
Perplexity was originally designed as the next generation of online search engines. Users enter queries into Perplexity just as they would into Google or Bing, and just like those other search engines, Perplexity responds with a list of sources. The difference is that Perplexity's AI component allows for follow-up questions and, more significantly for students, it doesn't just produce a "list" of sources. Instead, Perplexity produces a full textual response with multiple in-text citations. Give Perplexity a few basic instructions, and you can organize the text and make tweaks to its style so that it can resemble anything from a freshman comp essay to a graduate-level dissertation. That opens up some potential problems with the technology, at least when it's used on campus.
Use and Misuse
The line between student use and misuse of Perplexity AI is blurry and likely to remain so for the immediate future. For that very reason, we're not going to wade into fine distinctions here. However, we can offer some guidance for protecting yourself from allegations.
The only way to know for certain what is and isn't appropriate is to ask your individual instructor for guidance. Your university may have a school-wide policy. Your professor may have their own policy. Technology shifts so quickly now, though, that policies can't always keep up. And even if rules exist, they likely don't cover every possible situation. Only asking directly about a specific instance can provide you with concrete answers.
More broadly, you want to keep in mind the purpose of individual assignments and of your education in general. The goal is to master certain skills, not simply to earn a grade. Any time you feel you're using Perplexity as a means to avoid learning a necessary skill, you're almost certainly misusing the technology.
Here are some more specific checks you might want to put in place.
- Carefully consider the real purpose of Perplexity: to aid you in finding source material. Don't use it in any way that would go beyond that purpose.
- One way to ensure you don't misuse Perplexity is to avoid asking the program to clean up results or write in a particular style. That helps eliminate any temptation to use a cleaned-up copy as your own.
- Don't copy and paste whole paragraphs or even sentences from your Perplexity results. Ultimately, your writing should be your thoughts and your words. Even using the structure and organization of a Perplexity response can be considered plagiarism or cheating.
- Double-check the Perplexity results. In recent years, Perplexity AI has been sued for misquoting sources. You want to make sure that you're getting the information right. This will also force you to absorb the material yourself rather than simply drop it into your own work.
It's become a truism, but it's still worth pointing out: ultimately, cheating in any form harms the cheater most. The best way to avoid an accusation is to avoid cheating.
Detection Methods
It's crucial you recognize that there are methods faculty can use to detect AI-based cheating. None of them are perfect, and that can create its own problems, but any time you're cheating, you should assume you'll get caught, even if you are careful.
- If multiple students use Perplexity AI to complete their assignments, this raises the chance that your papers will all resemble one another.
- Perplexity itself frequently plagiarizes. That is, it doesn't do enough to reword source material. As a result, your instructor may easily be able to find source quotes you haven't cited.
- The easiest way for an instructor to detect plagiarism is simply to compare examples of your work. Sudden changes in the quality of your work can be tell-tale signs. Your instructor might ask you to complete a monitored, in-class assignment to see if it matches your out-of-class work. Or, they can simply ask you to explain your work orally to see if you genuinely know the material.
- An increasing number of companies are offering software programs designed to detect the use of AI. Your instructor could also just run your work through one of these checkers.
Most colleges and universities don't use the old “beyond a reasonable doubt” legal standard. Instead, they employ something known as “preponderance of the evidence.” You are responsible for (guilty of) cheating if it seems “more likely than not” that you cheated. Even the hint of impropriety could trigger a full-on investigation.
What to Do If You're Accused
There are ways to defend yourself from cheating and plagiarism allegations. Perplexity and similar AI programs aren't entirely understood, and there are a number of gray areas that schools haven't yet figured out how to handle. That means schools sometimes get allegations wrong. It also means there are ways to raise doubt about an allegation.
If you've been accused, there are steps you can take to improve your chances of successfully defending yourself.
- Remain calm. You don't want to do anything to exacerbate your situation.
- Keep records of everything. Don't throw any coursework away, even if it is unrelated to the specific charges against you. That material could be useful for demonstrating your abilities.
- Finally, and most importantly, don't try to handle the situation on your own. The Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team knows how your school's judicial system works. We also know exactly how to build a defense when Perplexity AI is involved.
The Lento Law Firm has helped hundreds of students defend themselves from college and university charges. We can help you to do the same. Call 888-535-3686 today, or take time right now to fill out our online form.
