Your AI Report Says `*%`. Here's What That Asterisk Actually Means

You open the report expecting a number and get an asterisk. Some writers read it as "too bad to show." According to the vendor's own documentation, it means close to the opposite.

Core point

Turnitin's Using the AI Writing Report guide says that for AI detection results above 0% and below a 20% threshold, it shows no percentage and no highlights, only *%. The stated reason is to reduce false positives and misinterpretation in a range where results are less reliable. The asterisk is a band, not a code to crack.

Five calm checks

1. Read the indicator state. Is it *%, 0%, a number, or a gray icon with no percentage? Each one means something different.

2. Don't hunt for a hidden digit. In this band the guide says no score is attributed.

3. Check the report date. The same guide notes that reports generated before July 8, 2024 may still show numbers below 20%.

4. Check the tool. Other products use their own bands and labels, so read that report's legend.

5. Keep evidence ready anyway. Drafts and version history speak to authorship. No display state does.

If you have been asked to revise

The *% state gives you no highlights to act on. If a surfaced report does mark passages and revision has been decided, HumanPen can help you rework only those passages in your DOCX / PPTX / TXT, with no score promises.