EditorWatch – Detect AI cheating by analyzing how students write code

Hacker News

Hi HN, I built EditorWatch to help CS instructors detect AI-generated code in programming assignments. Current plagiarism detectors only look at the final code. Students copying from ChatGPT slip through easily. EditorWatch is different - it monitors HOW code is written, not just what's written. A VS Code extension tracks coding patterns: - Sudden code appearance (paste bursts) - Lack of natural trial-and-error - Robotic typing patterns - Perfect-first-time code It generates an authenticity score (0-10) with visualizations for each submission. Privacy-conscious design: - No video/screenshots, only metadata (timestamps, character counts) - Only tracks specified file types ( .py, .js, etc.) - Students must explicitly opt-in - Data deleted after grading - 100% open source Free for education, paid for commercial use. Deploys easily on Railway or your own server. I know it's not foolproof - determined students can bypass it. But it raises the bar significantly and works as one tool alongside code reviews and oral exams. Would love feedback from educators and developers on the approach!

Visit product View on Hacker NewsJan 31, 2026

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Indie HackersFits the IH revenue-focused audience · Missing: supports, reddit linkedin, podcasting

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Hacker NewsMay not resonate with HN audience · Strong signals: open source, code review, ide · Missing: https docs, excited, just released

39%39% predicted probability of success on Hacker News, based on ML models trained on real launch data.

nativeThis product was originally launched on this platform.

AppSumoMay struggle as an AppSumo deal · Strong signals: reviews · Missing: plus, platform, intuitive

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Acquire.comPre-revenue stage for this audience · Missing: arr, mrr, revenue

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