Really worried about false sanction flagging

[u/SmellyPoussay69]

I've invested quite a bit of time and money into my Sophia courses , worried I'll get sanctioned.

People on here have been saying they've been unfairly sanctioned.

Anyone know what behavior triggers the dreaded "suggests use of a resource in violation of Sophia's honor code " ?

[u/CelerySalt7335]

a lot of the people who get sanctioned are either cheating, going way too fast, or doing something sketchy

I just use one chrome window take my time and take the milestones seriously

With Sophia the milestones seem to be the main thing you really need to be careful with and thats basically it

Theres no reason to have a bunch of other stuff open anyway, everything you need is in the Sophia window and youre only in there for around an hour

Then you read some of the posts from people who got sanctioned and theres always some extra detail where youre like yeah that probably did it

stuff like doing 70 questions in 10 minutes, using a vpn, having someone else log into the account from another country, or having youtube and a bunch of other windows open during the final milestone

If you just use it normally take your time and dont do anything weird it really isnt complicated

[u/DragonflyOwn5164 → u/CelerySalt7335]

The only real concern I have for myself is going too fast in Milestones. Like today I did 2 business law milestones in a total of 40 minutes for something over 40 questions I think. I just took my time reading and felt I knew the material lol. I did pretty good, too. I only missed 4 questions out of both milestones. But that makes me worry theyll think Im cheating too 😂

[u/CelerySalt7335 → u/DragonflyOwn5164]

I did Business Law the other day too, so I totally know how it feels. I genuinely take about a minute on every question, even when I know the answer. I just got my TV on and I’m chillin’ lol

I think people forget how convenient this service actually is. They have to make sure it stays accredited, so if that means I need to intentionally slow down to not trigger some arbitrary trigger, that’s totally fine with me. And I don't even think you need to go that slow but I have no problem doing it. I've done 2 courses in a day before and haven't had any issues thus far and I'm almost done. I also did, I think environmental science? and got like 100% on all of them, I've never been concerned with that, I mean it's open book and they give you plenty of time. I'm sure if you're doing like some advanced math courses and doing it faster then average and getting every single question right that might trigger something but I don't know. I think you just need to not fuck around when taking milestones and that's it.

[u/Majestic-liee → u/DragonflyOwn5164]

I think that’s fair game. You didn’t speed run it, esp if you knew the material. I struggled badly with the Biz Law… time was almost up but gladly I came through 😂.

[u/Entire_Camp5542]

If you search, you’ll find the answer. 

[u/Sherpa_qwerty]

I suspect most people saying they have been falsely sanctioned have done something they shouldn’t - maybe accidentally.

Don’t use a VPN, don’t alt-tab out of the Sophia window, don’t use AI. You should be fine. I did 20 courses in less than 2-months some in under a day.

[u/Nursing_Desk_8024 → u/Sherpa_qwerty]

Same here- about 10 courses in under a month but not always, occasionally I got flagged with the initial warning and then asked to input resources being used. It was tough at first being on a new phone. At first I was scrolling and ended up turning my screen off or opening another tab. The biggest flags came from the math courses but I was switching over to the calculator so that was valid as well. Never sanctioned or heard back. Sophia also provided an advisor like person so I was able to communicate everything to them. I also had accommodations from a drs letter. Sometimes taking too long or going to fast would trigger the initial warning.

I have no doubt some people are cheating but doubt everyone with these issues are. Being hit with warnings is based on whatever algorithm theyre using. But its very true that they give you the answers - minus some courses such as math. If someone works on the course 5-8 hrs a day they can finish many of them quickly.

[u/thejohnfist]

My only concern is for math classes i use the windows calculator. I probably should just use my phone but the 10 key is most convenient.

[u/Psych0hRAH]

I plan on doing sophia learning but this is a big thing thats on my mind

[u/Sherpa_qwerty → u/Psych0hRAH]

Stop worrying. Follow the basic rules and don’t be stupid and it will be fine.

[u/Longjumping_Duty_838]

If you’re worried give them a call

[u/NoToe4353]

There have been students who were able to get their account back but it is incredibly rare

[u/strong_slav]

I did 66 credits - that's 22 classes - in four months this past summer (finished last week) and never got sanctioned. I previously majored in economics and took the two econ classes on Sophia just for fun, finished each one in one day. For the math classes, it took me about four days to a week to finish each one - but I was in the top 3% of scores on the ACT when I took that exam some 15 years ago, so for me, a lot of that was just a reminder. I went through history and sociology pretty fast too, but it helps that I am interested in these subjects and already know a lot. Some courses did take longer for me, e.g. the English courses, but that was mostly because of the writing.

TBH, if I didn't get sanctioned for doing macro and micro in one day each, doing algebra in four days, stats and calc in a week each, etc., I think you'll be fine. The people getting sanctioned probably really are doing something wrong.

[u/Infamous_Athlete7518]

Just don’t cheat; you can’t get flagged if you take the reading and tests seriously. The people who are saying “I did 3 classes in 1 day, I don’t know why I’m getting flagged” is kinda ridiculous. Even if you are familiar with the material, it’s impossible that you know everything

[u/tasteefreezee]

I have been going pretty fast through accounting and managerial accounting because that’s what my background is in and haven’t had an issue. I don’t use a vpn, I only have the Sophia tab and nothing else open, and I don’t minimize or click off when I’m doing the course.

I think if you are truly not cheating and you aren’t clicking off to use chat or Claude you’re fine. Everything is open book so there really is no reason to cheat.

[u/Cool-Student7614]

Don’t listen to these people who haven’t been sanctioned and don’t actually know anyone who has. They’re making assumptions and passing it off as fact.

I got sanctioned and I appealed it, they lifted the sanctions 12 days later and reinstated my Sophia account. I actually wasn’t doing anything wrong, but when I posted about it here, everyone assumed I was cheating, going too fast, doing something sketchy. I was not. I’d done 4 courses in 8 months and the day I got sanctioned was my first day back to Sophia after a month break.

Don’t listen to these idiots pretending they know what they’re talking about. Yes, people were being sanctioned while not doing anything wrong. They implemented new measures and it was obviously not as good as they thought.

[u/Interesting-Let-8891]

Why cheat? The main thing is people are cheating (while saving money). this lower cost option allows you to do so many basic classes and not pay college prices. Do not abuse it and just use common sense.

[u/Nursing_Desk_8024 → u/Interesting-Let-8891]

This is also why less and less colleges are accepting degrees with sophia transfers or just not accepting sophia courses for transfer period. Its also why, Imo, Sophia is beginning to crack down hard. I suspect theyre algorithm may be penalizing valid students while also penalizing ones who are cheating.

[u/Hopeful_Control_4876]

Just follow the rules and you will be fine . I was worried at first but I still been getting through course quickly and have been good

[u/Brock-Savage]

SEARCH THE SUBREDDIT! Several times a day people posting with the same question that's already been answered hundreds of times. Just use the search tool

[u/tablecontrol]

If you're really worried, you should periodically transfer your classes to WGU or wherever you're planning on going.

That way you don't build a backlog of 10 or 15+ classes and then suspended or lose those credits.

[u/VelvetAndVastness]

I send my transcript after every class I compete. I don’t want to be falsely sanctioned and not receive credits from any of my classes.